Niger President Brig. Gen. Abdurrahman Tchiani has accused France of backing terrorists, in a bid to launch war against the Alliance of Sahel States, which includes Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso.
In a Nov. 18 address to soldiers serving in the Maradi region, Tchiani said: “France has decided to wage an all-out war against us because we have decided to take our fate into our own hands.... No foreign power will shed its blood to protect Nigeriens: Nigeriens must defend their land themselves.”
Tchiani also charged that France plans to balkanize Mali, dividing the country into four Islamist emirates: Azawad (north, Tuareg), Machina (central Fulbe territories), Timbuktu, and Serma Gurma, while Burkina Faso and Niger will be placed under the direct guardianship of one of these “emirs.” He pointed to recent secret meetings held to coordinate such a plan with the support of terrorist groups. Recent attacks on fuel convoys in Mali are part of this scenario.
“This is a carefully planned imperialist conspiracy against the three fraternal countries of the Alliance of Sahel States. The goal is the complete destruction of our sovereignty and the return of neo-colonial rule,” General Tchiani said. He added that attempts at an economic blockade have already failed. “We will not allow our countries to be turned into puppet formations,” he concluded.
Mali is being supported by contingents of the Afrika Korps, a Russian military formation controlled by the Russian Ministry of Defense. This was confirmed in a statement before the UN Security Council by Russia’s Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Anna Evstigneeva on Nov. 18. “We note that in recent days, thanks partly to Russian forces escorting fuel convoys, the situation in Mali seems to be trending towards improving.
The number of gas stations selling fuel has increased severalfold. On Nov. 10, classes resumed in Malian schools following two-week closure,” Evstigneeva said.
