The Nigerien Minister of the Interior, Public Security, and Territorial Administration, General Mohamed Toumba, explained that France is allegedly using the Trojan horse tactic to sabotage Niger. He noted that France is partnering with Niger’s neighbors to disrupt the country. Niger's relations with its previous colonizer, France, worsened following the July 2023 coup in Niger, which was marked by widespread protests near the French military station in Niger.
Following these incidents, the French embassy was attacked as well. About a year later, France closed its embassy in Niger indefinitely as tensions between the two countries escalated, but not before all French troops were forced to leave the West African country. As presently constituted, the relationship between France and Niger seems cold, as Niger has even gone as far as embarking on .
France indicated that local forces were unable to resolve the security issue on their own and that their soldiers were required. Toumba, however, said that it just supported the use of French troops to combat "jihadism." French forces, he continued, avoided action, behaved without consequence, and failed to provide security.
The situation therefore deteriorated. The minister also suggested that Nigeriens use extreme caution to contain the crisis. Very recently, Niger the operations of the British media company, BBC, owing to the suspicion that the company is trying to disrupt the country's peace.
Source: On July 26, 2023, the Republi.
