MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd August, 2023) The European Union has decided to evacuate all its citizens from Niger in light of the recent military coup in the country, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Tuesday.
"We have also decided to repatriate European nationals, and we are currently in the process of carrying out this operation," Borrell said in his EU External Action blog.
However, the European Commission's humanitarian aid teams will remain in Niger to soften the blow of the coup on vulnerable populations in the country, he added.
The EU supports the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the African Union in their efforts to restore constitutional order in Niger and will never recognize the new Nigerien authorities resulting from the coup, Borrell also said.
In response to allegations that the bloc is interfering in the region's internal affairs, Borrell noted that "the EU is present in the Sahel at the request of the legitimate governments of the countries in the region and respects their sovereign decisions.
On July 26, members of the Nigerien presidential guard said in a statement broadcast on national television that they had overthrown Bazoum, closed the borders and imposed a curfew in the country "until further notice." It came hours after the presidential guard detained the president at his residence and sealed off access to public offices in the capital Niamey. The guard's commander, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani, proclaimed himself the country's new leader.
