But now the United States has confirmed the military coup in Niger For the first time, the United States declared the removal of the Presid...

 But now the United States has confirmed the military coup in Niger

For the first time, the United States declared the removal of the President of the Republic of Niger, Bazoum Mohammed from the throne as a coup d'état, where it announced the suspension of 500 million dollars in aid to the country due to the removal of the elected government.

A statement by the spokesperson of the United States Department of State, Matthew Miller, stated that they will return these aid funds only as soon as the military that carried out the coup quickly return the civilian government to the right path.

The official said that they took this step after two months of trying behind the scenes with ECOWAS and the French country to see that President Bazoum Mohammed was returned to power, but their efforts did not succeed.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during a meeting with President Mohamed Bazoum in Niamey. 16/03/23 AP - Boureima Hama

  Miller said that the military that carried out the coup under the state of emergency that they launched, should restore the civilian government within 90 to 120 days, but observing the way things are going, there is no indication that they will the army is planning to do the same.

Stop support

The official said that under the laws of the United States, the confirmation of the coup requires the suspension of the aid they provide, therefore they stopped the aid of 200 million dollars and some funds from the 442 million dollars allocated to the developing countries that are developing democracies.

Terrorism

Miller said that the United States will leave at least one thousand soldiers working in Niger, while another official said that the soldiers will not continue to train their counterparts in Niger, but to monitor the activities of terrorists.

Niger's military leader Abdourahmane Tchiani with his entourage in Yamai © REUTERS/Balima Boureima/File Photo

The United States has said it will continue to operate its base in Agadez, which is used for drone strikes.