Why Niger wants to kick out the US military

Niger’s coup leadership is threatening to follow in the footsteps of its African neighbors Mali and Burkina Faso in making Russia its almost exclusive ally in defense and particularly, in the fight against the jihadism spreading in the Sahel region. The military junta that has ruled the country of 25 million inhabitants since a July 2023 uprising, under the command of General Abdurahamane Tchiani, has announced the end of the military agreement with the United States, which allows for the presence on its territory of more than a thousand Americans, including military personnel, contractors and civilians. The Biden administration and the US military command, which maintains an air base in Agaez, in the center of Niger, which is key to its security strategy in the region, have stated that they are still negotiating with Niamey authorities to try to avoid the expulsion.

Niger, one of the poorest countries in the world — fifth on the list, according to the Human Development Index —, has nonetheless attracted a strong foreign military presence in recent years. This includes forces from the United States, but also France, Italy and Germany. Rich in minerals, especially in valuable uranium, which is key to the nuclear industry, the country is both part of a key route for African migrants and the target of violence by jihadist groups.

Coronel Amadu Abdramane, spokesperson for the Niger military junta, appeared last week on television to label the U.S. military presence “illegal” and announce the end of the agreement between the two countries, “effective immediately”. In his statement, Abdramane said that during a recent visit by a U.S. delegation to Niamey, the country’s capital, Washington tried to deny Niger its “right to choose” its allies, in particular in the fight against jihadist violence. Without naming names, the Niger administration has made it clear that it considers Moscow its new strategic partner, which for Washington could be red flag.

The North American contingent to whose visit Abdramane referred included assistant secretary of state for African affairs, Molly Phee, the assistant secretary of defense for international security affairs, Celeste Wallander, and the commander of U.S. Africa Command (Africom), General Michael Langley. According to information that was made public by the Pentagon on Monday, on their trip to Niamey the U.S. functionaries, just as the Niger spokesperson said, “expressed concern over Niger’s potential relationships with Russia and Iran,” in addition to discussing “a new path of cooperation forward” for the two countries. New, because since July 26 of last year, the date that President Mohamed Bazoum was forcefully deposed — it took months for Washington to refer to the situation as a coup — the U.S. military’s mission, which until now has been focused on counterterrorism, has been frozen.

The United States has stationed around 1,000 citizens in Niger (the Pentagon won’t give an exact number). More than 600 are soldiers, in addition to civil personnel and contractors from private companies linked to security efforts. Washington has spent more than $100 million on the construction of Air Base 201 in Agadez, where the majority of its personnel are located. U.S. forces launch drones from the site in the fight against jihadist groups. In 2018, The New York Times broke news of the secret construction of a new CIA base in Dirkou, in the northern part of the country, designed for the operation of unmanned aircraft. According to information provided to EL PAÍS by Africom, that base is still not operative. In addition to the Agadez complex, Washington has also invested years and funds in the training of Niger soldiers at Camp Lemonier, which is located in Djibouti.

The U.S. Department of Defense says that diplomatic efforts with the Niger junta are still “ongoing”. The U.S. chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, Charles Q. Brown Jr., said on Tuesday from the Ramstein air base that since Coronel Abdramane’s announcement, they have received “mixed signals”, but that they are preparing for both staying in and leaving the country. Niger foreshadowed its new alliance with Russia as early as last December, with a Niamey meeting of Russian deputy defense minister Yunus-Bek Evkurov and general Tchiani. For Niger authorities, Mali is serving as a role model. There, an alliance between Bamako and Moscow has allowed Mali’s armed forces, with key support from over a thousand Wagner mercenaries, to recover part of the territory it had lost to radical Tuareg and Islamist rebels. “Russian support has allowed them to reinforce their infantry. For the first time in a decade, they can launch offensives, advance and confront the enemy,” says Ibrahim Yahaya, Sahel deputy director for the International Crisis Group. “All this has raised moral among the troops. The recovery of Kidal, the bastion of Tuareg rebellion [in Mali], was a symbol of this.” As a result of their military victories, the Mali regime has tremendous popular backing, even though violence has grown, with the civil population as its primary victim.

Uranium sales

The second area of concern expressed by Phee’s delegation in Niamey that did not sit well with the Niger junta was Iran. At the end of January, the African country’s Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine traveled to Tehran — before going on to Moscow — to meet with Iranian authorities. According to The Wall Street Journal, Washington is concerned about the Iranian nuclear program gaining access to Niger’s uranium. Niamey has denied that there is any sales agreement with Tehran regarding the radioactive chemical element. Niger is the seventh largest producer of uranium and is one of the chief providers to France.

The new era in Niger’s foreign relations after July’s coup began with the expulsion of French troops. The hostility Paris showed towards the military coup, contributing to a regional armed campaign to return the deposed Bazoum to office, triggered the ouster. Niger had become the fallback territory for the last soldiers involved in the anti-jihadism Operation Barkhane after they were ordered to leave Mali. Expulsed from the central Sahel by the wave of coups, part of the French contingent returned home, with the last of its troops and military equipment transferred to Chad, its last ally in the region.

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