Ouagadougou: Nigeria has announced the opening of land and air borders with its neighbor Niger. This was announced by the spokesperson for the Nigerian president, Ajuri Ngelale.
Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu, “ordered the immediate opening of Nigeria’s land and air borders with Niger and the lifting of other sanctions,” Ngelale was quoted as saying by the Premium Times newspaper. According to him, this measure follows the decisions taken at the summit of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to cancel all sanctions against Niger previously imposed following the takeover of power. military group in this country at the end of July 2023. All Niger’s assets with the ECOWAS Central Bank will also be thawed by order of Bola Tinubu, who is this year the president of the community.
The soldiers of the Presidential Guard took power in Niger last July. They dismissed President Mohamed Bazoum. The National Council for the Safeguarding of the Homeland, led by the commander of the Presidential Guard,
Abdourahamane Tchiani, was created to govern the country.
ECOWAS responded by imposing sanctions against Niger, including closing its borders with Nigeria and banning air traffic. All financial transactions with the country were also halted and Niger State assets in ECOWAS central banks were frozen. On February 24, the ECOWAS summit lifted sanctions not only against Niger, but also against Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea, where military coups were also carried out.
Source: Burkina Information Agency