ABUJA – Thursday, 24 August 2023 (APS) – Minister of Foreign Affairs and National Community Abroad, Ahmed Attaf, said that President of the Republic, Abdelmadjid Tebboune, was strongly convinced of the possibility of a peaceful political process to resolve the crisis in Niger, stressing that this was a clear vision that he firmly defended.
“It is obvious that the crisis in Niger is at the forefront of this visit and of the discussions I have had with my counterpart, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Nigeria, a sister country, given the repercussions of this crisis, which goes far beyond the borders of this neighbouring country of Nigeria and Algeria,” said Attaf, who has been on a working visit to Nigeria since Wednesday, at the invitation of the President of the Republic.
In this regard, Attaf said that they had agreed in particular on the need to coordinate the two countries’ efforts, in particular the initiatives launched by Abdelmadjid Tebboune and his Nigerian counterpart, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, in his capacity as current President of ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States), to strengthen international and regional momentum and encourage everyone to support the peaceful political process to resolve the crisis in Niger.”
President Tebboune, “who firmly believes that the way is still open to achieve this noble objective, has developed a clear strategy for resolving this crisis and supported its content, principles and mechanisms,” said the Foreign Minister.
This solution guarantees “full compliance with the African legal framework, which prohibits and rejects unconstitutional changes of government, and ensures a return to constitutional order in Niger,” added Attaf.