The United States’ top diplomat has offered his “unflagging support” to Niger’s ousted leader, warning his captors that hundreds of millions of dollars of assistance could be at risk if democratic norms are not restored.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken told Niger President Mohamed Bazoum in a phone call that Washington would work to reestablish the constitutional order after the West African leader was toppled in a military coup, the state department said on Friday.
Blinken also “praised Bazoum’s role in promoting security not only in Niger but the wider West Africa region”.
Blinken’s comments come after he told Bazoum earlier in the week that Washington’s support of the landlocked African nation would depend on its “democratic governance and respect for the rule of law and human rights”.
Niger’s General Abdourahamane Tchiani on Friday declared himself the head of a transitional government after members of Niger’s presidential guard earlier this week took Bazoum into custody.
In an address on state television on Friday, the 62-year-old military leader said he had taken control of the government to prevent “the gradual and inevitable demise” of the country.
Post from www.aljazeera.com