ECOWAS ‘has nothing against Niger, Mali or Burkina Faso’ — Nigerian military chief

African nations should unite against any form of uprising from jihadists in the Sahel region and other parts of West Africa following the withdrawal of the coup-hit Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso from ECOWAS, Nigeria’s military chief, General Christopher Musa has said.
The withdrawal of the three member states from the regional bloc, coupled with a constitutional crisis in another, has heightened concerns about the potential expansion of insecurity from the Sahel to other parts of West Africa. This has resulted in widespread fear and escalating tensions among the affected countries. Ahead of an Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) summit in Nigeria’s capital Abuja on Saturday (24 February), which is expected to discuss the exit of the three member states and a constitutional crisis in a fourth, Nigeria’s military chief, General Christopher Musa, has spoken to the media about insecurity in West Africa.
General Musa has emphasized the importance of African solidarity and the need to avoid turning the region into a proxy war zone, urging African nations to unite against uprisings from jihadists in the Sahel region and other parts of West Africa. “Nigeria has nothing against Niger, Cameroon or Burkina Faso. We all need each other. Together, we can confront the jihadists, and the jihadists are coming after them. Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have been having a hot war with the jihadists,” he said. When asked about the military resolution of the crisis against Niger, General Musa explained that “diplomatically, ECOWAS is making efforts to get across to Niger for them to see reasons why they need to return to democracy and return to ECOWAS.”