Niger’s ambassador to France, Aïchatou Boulama Kané, said in an interview with AFP on Friday August 4 that she was “always the ambassador of legitimate President Bazoum Mohamed”. She added that she considered the putschists’ decision to remove her from office to be “null and void”.
Aïchatou Boulama Kané said that she had received notification of her dismissal “by letter”, in which the putschists appointed a charge d’affaires to replace her, in this case the first adviser of the Niger embassy in France. “I have notified the First Counselor that I reject this decision,” the ambassador said.
“I am currently in my office; President Bazoum called me yesterday to tell me: ‘Go to your office, you have my confidence and we continue the work’”, she added. Mr. Bazoum, 63, has been held with his family in his presidential residence since the day of the coup, July 26.
Also reacting to the junta’s decision to cut off military cooperation with France, the ambassador called it “illegal” and a “flight forward”. “This denunciation, like the notification made to me, is illegal [and] regrettable,” commented the ambassador. According to her, the putschists are aiming in this decision “for the French presence and the current partnership. This is part of their intention to get France out of Niger.”
France, which evacuated 577 of its nationals to Niger on Tuesday 1 and Wednesday August 2, has 1,500 soldiers deployed for the fight against jihadists, in this country undermined by the violence of these armed groups. “This cooperation (with France) in the field of defense and security is a very important collaboration which works well and which allows us to have convincing results on the ground in the fight against terrorism”, estimated the diplomat.
The ambassador does not hope for “a withdrawal of French troops” from Niger, which would be “a serious setback in terms of security” for this country.
