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Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger reaffirm withdrawal from ECOWAS irreversible

"The College of national leaders considers the attempt to prolong the withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from ECOWAS yet another attempt that would allow the French junta and its lackeys to continue planning and carrying out actions, aimed at destabilization of the Sahel Alliance," says the joint statement

RABAT, December 23. /TASS/. Leaders of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, which are all members of the Sahel Alliance, reaffirmed that their decision to withdraw from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) is irreversible and immediate.

"While reaffirming the irreversible and immediate nature of the Sahel Alliance states’ withdrawal from ECOWAS, stated in the December 14, 2024 declaration, the College of national leaders considers the attempt to prolong the withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from ECOWAS yet another attempt that would allow the French junta and its lackeys to continue planning and carrying out actions, aimed at destabilization of the Sahel Alliance," says the joint statement of the three states’ leaders.

The heads of states also noted that "since the moment of adoption of the new strategic position, dictated by the [Sahel Alliance states’] legitimate aspirations for freedom and peace, the imperialist French junta, which feels a threat for its interests, supported by some sub-regional leaders, desperately seeks to stop the liberation dynamic, initiated by the Sahel Alliance," the declaration reads.

On December 15, participants of the ECOWAS Summit in Abuja, approved the decision of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger to withdraw from the association. At the same time, these three countries were granted a six-month "transitional period" until July 29, 2025, allowing the states the return to the association.

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