ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) 鈥 Niger鈥檚 junta on Monday scrapped two key military agreements that the West African nation signed with the European Union to help fight the violence in Africa鈥檚 Sahel region as the country's army leaders and a senior Russian defense official discussed military cooperation.
Before the coup that , Niger had been the West and Europe鈥檚 last major security partner in the Sahel, the vast region south of the Sahara Desert that Islamic extremist groups have turned into the global terror hot spot.
In a memo, Niger鈥檚 foreign affairs ministry said the government has decided to "withdraw the privileges and immunities granted鈥 under the EU Military Partnership Mission in Niger that was launched in February and consequently 鈥渉as no legal obligation鈥 related to that partnership.
It also dismissed the EU Civilian Capacity-Building Mission established in 2012 to strengthen Niger鈥檚 internal security sector, effectively revoking its approval for the missions.
The developments are the latest in since the July coup.
In a rare visit on Sunday, a Russian delegation led by Russia鈥檚 Deputy Minister of Defense Lounous-Bek Evkourov met with Niger鈥檚 junta leader, Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani, and Minister of State for 好色tv Defense Salifou Mody. The two sides held more meetings on Monday to discuss military and defense issues.
鈥淎t the center of the discussions is the strengthening of cooperation between the two countries in the field of defense,鈥 Niger鈥檚 defense ministry said in a statement, hinting at formal political ties with Moscow, which has no embassy or military personnel in the country.
Most of Niger鈥檚 foreign economic and security allies have sanctioned the country, including France, which had 1,500 troops operating in Niger. All of them have been asked to leave.
Analysts say that although regional and international sanctions to force the junta to reverse its coup , they have also emboldened the military government as it consolidates its hold on power and seeks new partnerships.
Russia has been active in parts of Africa through its private mercenary , from the Central African Republic, where the mercenary forces have helped provide security services to the government, to Mali, where they are partnering with the army in battling armed rebels and where the Evkourov-led delegation also visited.
The Wagner group was that the military leaders in Niger reached out to for support as they faced a possible military intervention from West Africa's regional bloc of ECOWAS in a bid to reverse the coup.
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