Nigeria denies colluding with France to destabilize Niger

Nigeria has denied accusations by Niger’s military leader, Brigadier General Abdourahmane Tchiani, of colluding with France to destabilize the junta-led nation.

In an interview on Christmas Day, General Tchiani accused France of allying with militant groups in the Lake Chad region to undermine Niger’s security, allegedly with Nigeria’s knowledge.

“The Nigerian authorities are not unaware of this covert maneuver,” General Tchiani told AFP.

In response, Nigeria’s national security adviser Nuhu Ribadu told the BBC Hausa that the allegations were “baseless” and “false.”

Ribadu said Nigeria would never “sabotage Niger or allow any disaster to befall it.”

Nigeria’s Information Minister Mohammed Idris said the allegations were baseless and were a “diversionary tactic intended to cover up the failures of his administration.”

“These claims exist solely in the realm of imagination. Nigeria has never engaged in any alliance, overt or covert, with France – or any other country – to destabilize Niger Republic,” Idris said.

Idris also denied sabotaging the pipeline and Niger’s agriculture, of which he was accused.

General Tchiani’s accusations have worsened diplomatic tensions with Nigeria, already strained since the 2023 military coup that overthrew former president Mohamed Bazoum.

The West African regional bloc, Ecowas, led by Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, imposed economic sanctions on Niger and threatened military intervention if constitutional order was not restored.

Ecowas came to Nigeria’s defense in a statement on Thursday refuting the claims.

“For years, Nigeria has supported peace and security of various countries not only in the West African sub-region but also on the African continent,” the regional bloc said in a statement shared on Thursday.

“Ecowas therefore rejects any suggestion that such a generous and magnanimous country could become a state sponsor of terrorism,” it reads.

two weeks ago, ECOWAS approved the withdrawal of three countries with military leadership, including Nigerafter they refused to restore democratic government.

Since the coup, Niger has urged France and other Western powers to withdraw their military bases and has formed a security alliance with neighbors Mali and Burkina Faso, led by a military junta.