The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has announced that it has finalized its plans for a possible military intervention in Niger, where a coup d’etat toppled the democratically elected government last month. The regional bloc said it has chosen an undisclosed “D-Day” for the deployment of its standby force, but stressed that it still prefers a peaceful resolution of the crisis.
ECOWAS, which has condemned the coup and imposed sanctions on the junta, said it is ready to use military force to restore constitutional order in Niger, one of the few remaining democracies in the region. The bloc’s defense chiefs met in Ghana’s capital Accra on Thursday and Friday to discuss the operational details of the intervention.