Mali, Burkina Faso Warn Niger Intervention Considered ‘Declaration of War’

Junta-led Mali and Burkina Faso have warned that military intervention to restore deposed Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum would be considered a “declaration of war against their two countries,” Mali interim Prime Minister Col. Abdoulaye Maiga said Monday.

In a speech on state television, Maiga said intervention against Niger would lead the two nations to withdraw from the regional bloc ECOWAS, “as well as the adoption of self-defense measures in support of the armed forces and the people of Niger.”

The warning came after ECOWAS imposed sanctions on the West African nation and threatened to use “force” if Bazoum was not reinstated in a week.

Source: VOA