Niger military junta condemns UN for preventing its participation at General Assembly

The military junta that removed President Mohamed Bazoum from power has critisised the United Nations Secretary General for preventing its delegates to the UN meeting in New York from participating at the event. The military administrators said the move was taken by the UN in order to please France, its former colonial ruler…

The Nigerien military junta has condemned the United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of “obstructing” the West African nation’s full participation at the U.N.’s annual meeting of world leaders in New York.

The junta said the move to stop the envoy from Niamey from taking active participation at the event was an attempt to please France, Niger’s former colonizer, and its allies.

Commenting on the event that played out in New York, Col. Maj. Amadou Abdramane, a spokesman for the military men who removed Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum in a July coup, stresses that the decision to prevent the junta’s envoy from speaking at the U.N. General Assembly in New York could “undermine any effort to end the crisis in our country.”

The junta spokesman accused the former minister, Hassoumi Massoudou, of “high treason” and alleged that Guterres’ only interest was “keeping with the determination of France and the European Union to punish Niger and its people at all costs for their patriotic choice.” Abdramane also accused the West African regional bloc ECOWAS of needless intervention.

Recall that the deposed president of Niger, Mohamed Bazoum appealed to the regional ECOWAS court to sanction his release and reinstatement as president.

ECOWAS has said it considers a military intervention an option for restoring the deposed president should diplomatic moves fail.