The Military wing of the Economic Community of West African States ECOWAS have declared that they are ready to participate in a standby force that could intervene in Niger Republic.
The ECOWAS Defence Chiefs at a meeting in Accra, Ghana’s capital, today August 17, affirmed that they were prepared to restore civil rule in Niger.
All ECOWAS member states except those under military rule and Cape Verde pledged readiness to participate in the standby force, the West African regional bloc commissioner, Abdel-Fatau Musah, was quoted.
Aljazeera quotes Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, saying:
“Democracy is what we stand for and it’s what we encourage,”
“The focus of our gathering is not simply to react to events, but to proactively chart a course that results in peace and promote stability.”
It would be recalled that after presidential guards seized power from President Mohamed Bazoum, ECOWAS issued a 7-day ultimatum to the military to restore the president or risk sanctions, including possible military action.
