Going down one path without giving up the other requires a certain sense of diplomacy. After the coup in Niger, the Islamic Republic of Mauritania first denounced the coup by General Abdourahamane Tiani, former head of the presidential guard. In a statement issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on July 26, the very day of the putsch that overthrew Mohamed Bazoum, the Mauritanian government said it was following “with great concern the evolution of the situation in this brotherly country” and “renewing its absolute rejection of unconstitutional changes”.
This position surprised the international community. This is the first time that Mauritania, which has never officially taken a position on the fate of Malian Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta (overthrown in 2020), Guinean Alpha Condé (in 2021) or Burkinabé Roch Marc Christian Kaboré (in 2022 ), openly condemns a coup. “Mauritania has always kept a very discreet and very measured attitude,” explains Alain Antil, head of monitoring sub-Saharan Africa at the French Institute for International Relations (IFRI). It never appears on the front line and favors the diplomatic route. »
“She made a condemnation in principle this time,” adds a North African observer. Because the country probably holds the record in the sub-region for putschs and the Mauritanian president himself participated in the last two in his country, in 2005 and 2008, before being democratically elected in 2019.
A country spared from jihadism
Was the communiqué calling for the return to constitutional order in Niger dictated by the fear of regional contagion from coups? Mohamed Ould Ghazouani is currently the last democratically elected president of the G5 Sahel, which includes, alongside Mauritania, Chad, Niger and Burkina Faso. According to several sources, security has been reinforced around the Mauritanian head of state since July 26. “As head of intelligence and then as ex-chief of staff, President Ghazouani has a good knowledge of the mysteries of national defense, explains Alain Antil. The military has long been a focus: salaries have been upgraded recently and overseas training has been offered to officers. Mauritania can also congratulate itself on having become a safe country. While Niger – where at least 17 soldiers were killed in a terrorist ambush on Tuesday – Mali and Burkina Faso are regularly hit by jihadist attacks, it has not experienced any offensive on its territory since 2011.
Since the coup in Niger, the Mauritanian president has been encouraged several times by his peers to become more involved in this new Sahelian crisis. Mauritania has not been part of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) since 1998. In Abuja, where Mohamed Ould Ghazouani was present at the ECOWAS meeting on August 9 as current president of the G5 Sahel, “he received a strong request from Macky Sall [president of Senegal in favor of intervention] to weigh in with all his weight, said a close friend of the Mauritanian presidency. He also received a visit from an influential Mauritanian Tuareg in the Sahel, an adviser in particular to President Bazoum, who tried to convince him to adhere to the idea of ??a military intervention. But Mr. Ghazouani’s position has remained the same: Nouakchott will not support the ousted regime beyond a statement, even though he is a friend of Mohamed Bazoum. »
The participation of Mauritanian soldiers in a possible intervention alongside ECOWAS, and while the chiefs of staff of the West African armies are meeting in Ghana on Thursday 16 and Friday 17 August to discuss the modalities, is not on today’s agenda.
Same position on the heavy economic and financial sanctions imposed on Niamey: Nouakchott refused to align with the position of ECOWAS. As when a blockade was imposed on Mali, Mauritania refused to close its border, while its port is one of the major trade routes for Bamako as for Niamey. Mohamed Ould Ghazouani is also wary of dissatisfaction with the Malian junta, which assured the Nigerien putschists of their solidarity. “Mauritania does not want to antagonize the Malian junta,” they say at the presidency. She no longer wants to risk tarnishing her relations with Niger.
