Following the July coup that deposed democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum, French President Emmanuel Macron has said that his nation will withdraw its ambassador and troops from the Niger Republic.
France has 1,500 soldiers stationed at its base in Niger and rejected a request from the country's new military authorities for its ambassador to depart.
Additionally, French forces were requested to depart Burkina Faso and Mali, two of its former colonies.
In recent weeks, thousands of people have demonstrated in Niamey, the nation's capital, notably in front of a military installation housing French troops. Since Macron refused to acknowledge the coup, the new leaders have been calling for the withdrawal of the French ambassador and military.
On September 24, Macron made the announcement that he will direct the immediate withdrawal of both his troops and the French ambassador to Niger.
"France has made the decision to recall its ambassador. In the next hours, our ambassador and a number of other ambassadors will return to France, said Macron in a Sunday evening television interview.
Military collaboration was "over," he continued, and French forces would begin to leave in "the months and weeks to come" before finishing off "by the end of the year."
According to Macron, he informed Bazoum, who had been expelled from France, on Sunday that "France has decided to bring back its ambassador, and in the coming hours our ambassador and several diplomats will return to France."
Macron went on to declare that Bazoum was being held "as a hostage" and continued to be the "only legitimate authority" in the nation.
He said that the coup d'etat was directed against him because of his brave reforms, the widespread ethnic score-settling, and the political cowardice that was there.
Following the July coup, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) levied sanctions and threatened to use military force as a last resort if diplomatic efforts to restore Bazoum's rule were unsuccessful. But as the region's nations backed the new military rulers, ECOWAS' rhetoric came to an end.
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