German ambassador expelled from Chad over ‘too much interference’

Germany’s ambassador to Chad, Gordon Kricke, departed N’Djamena airport over the weekend after he was declared ‘persona non grata’ by the government for his “impolite attitude” and expelled from the country.

Chad ordered the German ambassador to leave the country within 48 hours for ‘non-respect of diplomatic customs’, the government said in a statement, but Chadian officials were elusive as to the actual reasons of his expulsion. “This decision of the government is motivated by the discourteous attitude and the non-respect of diplomatic customs,” the country’s communication ministry tweeted. But two Chadian government sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told the media that the German ambassador was ordered to leave the country after “interfering too much” in the “governance of the country,” particularly by criticizing delays in holding elections after the coup, and a ruling last year that will allow interim military leader Mahamat Idriss Deby to run in elections in 2024.

Deby Itno was proclaimed president in April 2021, when his father who had led the vast Sahelian country for 30 years was killed in battle. The military junta initially promised to hand power to civilians through “free and democratic elections”, however in October 2022, Deby’s rule was extended for two years. The move has been slammed by the opposition and main rebel movements. A German foreign ministry official deemed the reasons for expelling their ambassador, who had held the post since July 2021, “absolutely incomprehensible”.

The expulsion comes some three months after Burkina Faso’s military junta has expelled France’s ambassador to the West African country, amid deteriorating bilateral relations. Anti-French sentiments surged last year in the West African country.