The Nigerien government ended all military ties with the US and called it ‘profoundly unfair’. The West African nation claimed that the US has been condescending in their dealings with them and such has not been taken lightly by the current regime.
In a statement made on national television, the Nigerien military spokesman Colonel Major Amadou Abdramane announced that, “The government of Niger, taking into account the aspirations and interests of its people, decides with full responsibility to denounce with immediate effect the agreement relating to the status of military personnel of the United States and civilian employees of the American Department of Defense in the territory of the Republic of Niger,”
He further added that the agreement which was signed in 2012 by the Obama administration and former Nigerian leadership “is not only profoundly unfair in its substance but it also does not meet the aspirations and interests of the Nigerien people,”
According to him, the agreement also violated the “constitutional and democratic rules” of Niger’s sovereignty.
The US currently has two military bases in Niger and has been using the West African nation for its military operation in the region. In recent years, there has been growing concern by many Africans regarding the presence of foreign military bases in Africa.
Many young Africans felt that the presence of foreign bases in Africa including those from European and Asian countries posed a threat to the sovereignty not only to the host country but the whole continent as well.
