On September 16, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger signed a charter on the creation of the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), a collective defense organization in a key area of the region, amid the members’ deteriorating relations with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) following the July coup in Niger.

Burkina Faso, Niger and Mali announced their withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African States, Mali’s Territorial Administration and Decentralization Minister, Government Spokesperson Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga said on Sunday.

In a joint communique, the three countries explained that “the organization has not provided assistance to our States in the framework of our existential fight against terrorism and insecurity.”

The countries underlined with “great regret, bitterness and huge disappointment” that ECOWAS has “betrayed its founding principles” under the foreign influence.

“ECOWAS, under the influence of foreign powers, betraying its founding principles, has become a threat to its member states and its populations whose happiness it is supposed to ensure,” the document said.

Furthermore, ECOWAS didn’t provide help to Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso in their fight against terrorism and insecurity but instead of it sanctioned the countries after the coups, according to the statement.

“[What’s even] worse [is that] when these States decided to take their destiny into their own hands, [ECOWAS] adopted an irrational and unacceptable posture by imposing illegal, illegitimate, inhumane and irresponsible sanctions in violation of its own texts; all things which have further weakened populations already bruised by years of violence imposed by instrumentalized and remote-controlled terrorist hordes,” the communique read.

Thus, given the current situation, the heads of state decided to terminate the membership of their countries in the economic community.
“[The heads of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger] have accepted their full responsibility to history and responded to the aspirations and concerns of their people, decide without delay and in full sovereignty to withdraw Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from the Economic Community of West African States,” the document concluded.