The military coup in Niger received considerable media coverage in late July, as the Presidential Guard deposed President Mohamed Bazoum. The coup received significant support from neighboring Burkina Faso, Mali and Guinea, who like Niger, were previously under French colonial rule. These countries have since joined a military coalition with Niger, with backing from Algeria, amid growing fears of a potential intervention by Western-backed states in the ECOWAS bloc. Is a military confrontation on the horizon? Or can this be resolved through diplomacy? The host of The MO, Manila Chan, sits down with West Africa expert Koffi Kouakou to discuss these issues, and what the future holds for Niger and the Sahel region as a whole.
