Be careful, Niger is getting closer to Russia and Iran. Report Wsj

23 March 20241 month ago babelfish

Now that Niger, a former reliable partner of the United States, is also turning towards Russia and Iran, the anti-West axis is strengthening and the African Sahel region is the latest hot front that could explode. The Wall Street Journal article

As the influence of the West and especially the United States retreats around the world, disorder and America's enemies fill the void. The latest front that could explode is the Sahel region of Africa, where the junta in power in Niger has put an end to military cooperation with the United States – writes the Wall Street Journal .

THE RUPTURE BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES AND NIGER

Junta spokesman Amadou Abdramane said Saturday that Niger was canceling its status of forces agreement with the United States "with immediate effect." This would expose U.S. personnel to greater legal risks if they continued to operate in Niger. Pentagon Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh said Monday that the United States was “working through diplomatic channels to try to obtain clarification.”

Before last July's coup, Niger was a reliable partner of the United States in a difficult context. Boko Haram and affiliates of the Islamic State and Al Qaeda operate in the region, and Niger has hosted the second largest US military presence on the continent after Djibouti. About 1,000 U.S. troops were present as of June 2023, and a $110 million U.S. drone base in Agadez has been a key outpost against jihadists in North Africa, including in Libya and Algeria.

THE REACTION OF THE EU AND THE USA

The European Union suspended security cooperation and financial support after the coup. The United States has halted some development assistance, trade benefits, and security cooperation, while maintaining its military presence in Niger and continuing to conduct intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance operations. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a regional political and economic union, initially imposed sanctions on Niger, one of the world's poorest countries, driving up prices.

THE DANGEROUS APPROACH TO RUSSIA AND IRAN

One risk of this punitive approach was that it created opportunities for the world's rogue regimes. Since then, senior Niger junta officials have flown to Tehran and Moscow.

The Wall Street Journal reported Monday that U.S. officials have raised the alarm about a possible deal to give Iran access to Niger's abundant uranium reserves. The Russian Defense Ministry in January praised “the growth of bilateral military and military-technical cooperation” and “growing Russia-Niger relations in the defense sector.” Niger has also deepened its relations with Burkina Faso and Mali, two neighbors with close ties to Moscow.

PROBLEMS ON PROBLEMS

Niger has already expelled around 1,500 French soldiers, revoked a 2015 law aimed at curbing migration to Europe, ended internal security cooperation with the European Union and canceled a planned military cooperation mission of the EU against terrorism. This makes it particularly important for France to maintain a presence elsewhere in northern and central Africa, as it traditionally does.

Problems in Africa have been building for some time, with Chinese bases expanding and the Russian Wagner Group offering paid security. Now Iran is bidding for uranium. The anti-Western axis is playing to dominate the continent and its resources. If the Biden administration has a strategy to counter this, it is not obvious.

Biden raises a rhetorical alarm about the growing disorder of the world, but refuses to place the United States on a platform adequate for this new era of global conflict that should mobilize military and covert resources to counter it.