Niamey – Niger’s parliament will for the first time tackle the question of the presence of foreign forces fighting jihadists in the impoverished Sahel nation, the government said on Friday.
The foreign troops, who work with the national military, are often perceived as “occupying forces” by local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the government noted.
“It is important that the Nigerien people, through the parliament, speak clearly on the issue,” said Foreign Minister Hassoumi Massoudou.
“The debate will take place in a few days,” he added.
At a press conference with his German counterpart Annalena Baerbock, the minister said Niger sought “an increase in the intervention of our partners”.
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“With the departure of French forces from northern Mali, we expect greater pressure from terrorists in our country,” he said.
The parliament in Niamey is dominated by allies of President Mohamed Bazoum.
Niger has the support of several Western countries in its battle against Al-Qaeda and Islamic State-linked jihadists, including the United States and France, which have military bases in the capital and the Agadez region in the north.
Germany, which runs a logistics outpost in Niamey, has set up a centre close to the border with Mali to train Nigerien special forces.
Italy and Canada are also involved in special forces training.
Local NGOs consider the troops as occupiers who threaten national sovereignty in what the UN Human Development Index lists as the world’s poorest country.
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Such criticism led Bazoum to announce at the end of February that he would ask parliament if it agreed with “arrangements” that were to be made with foreign partners to help tackle the jihadists.
Those arrangements have yet to be made public.
French army chief of staff general Thierry Burkhard met his Nigerien counterpart general Salifou Modi in Niamey at the end of March to discuss what he said was “the type of aid that the French army could bring”.
“We have to be very close to the real needs of the Nigerien army,” he added.
A French army spokesperson said if Niamey requested it, “a system of joint deployment” was possible north of the capital, closer to the volatile borders with Mali and Burkina Faso.
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Source: AFP
Picture: Unsplash
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