NAIROBI, January 30. /TASS/. Burkina Faso has officially notified the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) of its decision to drop out of the bloc, Reuters quoted the country's Foreign Ministry as saying.

Mali and Niger had also previously sent similar notifications to ECOWAS. On January 28, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger announced their withdrawal from ECOWAS, a regional organization of 15 countries.

On Monday, the Foreign Ministry of Nigeria, which holds the ECOWAS presidency, said the military authorities of Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali acted in "bad faith" by making the joint decision to withdraw from the organization.

On Tuesday, the African Union urged the three countries to open a dialogue with ECOWAS' representatives.

Last September, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger signed a charter to create a collective defense organization called the Alliance of Sahel States (ASS). The founding document noted that violation of the sovereignty or territorial integrity of one or more parties to the charter will be considered an aggressive act against all three parties and will require their assistance, individually or collectively, up to and including the use of military force.