Well, that’ll raise the diplomatic temperature several degrees.

They did give Amb. Sylvain Itte 48 hours to get packed up after receiving a letter in which he was asked to leave. Or, as they put it, when the junta “invited him” to leave.

…The Nigerien Ministry of Foreign Affairs said French Ambassador Sylvain Itte was asked to leave Niger within 48 hours in a letter that accused him of ignoring an invitation for a meeting with the ministry.

The letter dated Friday, a copy of which was seen by The Associated Press, also cited “actions of the French government contrary to the interests of Niger.”

France has consistently acknowledged only the authority of Niger’s elected President Mohamed Bazoum, still detained by the junta. Paris reiterated Friday night that “only legitimate elected Nigerien authorities” have a say about the fate of its ambassador.

Macron was definitely not on board with abandoning their embassy in the former colony. Plus, they still have over a thousand French troops on the ground, mainly in the capitol city of Naimey. The putschists had given the French 30 days to pack their 1500 troops up and get them out, and the French naturally said “non.”

Fate of French forces in Niger hangs in the balance
Niger’s junta is demanding the departure of France’s 1,500 soldiers by early September, a demand that Paris says is unacceptable.

… A clear message is being sent by the junta united within the National Council for the Safeguarding of the Homeland (CNSP): French soldiers, present since 2013 alongside the Nigerien army in the fight against jihadist movements – including the al-Qaeda-affiliated Jama’a Nusrat ul-Islam wa al-Muslimin (JNIM) and the Islamic State in the Sahel – must pack up. Speaking on national television on August 3, Colonel Major Amadou Abdramane, CNSP spokesperson and now minister of youth and sports, officially canceled the five military cooperation agreements signed with France between 1977 and 2020. The termination was justified by “France’s casual attitude and reaction to the internal situation prevailing in the country.”

Being the French ambassador, I guess he was feeling contrary about the order to exit, as well. Macron’s message three days ago was basically “we don’t negotiate with terrorists.”

French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that France’s ambassador is staying at his post in Niger despite being asked to leave by the ruling junta, speaking out firmly against the coup leaders while insisting that France is not Niger’s enemy.

…Macron dismissed concerns that standing up to the junta could be dangerous.

That didn’t work out so well for the Amb. Itte or his staff today.

French Ambassador to Niger Sylvain Itte stripped of diplomatic immunity

The naive Frenchman thought that nothing would happen to him, Niger would swallow it. But the reality turned out to be more severe:

The Niger police have arrested Ambassador Itte and other staff members and… pic.twitter.com/23mIRpxtbv

— Sprinter (@Sprinter99800) August 31, 2023

And the embassy itself seems to be surrounded by Nigeriens at the moment. That’s some pretty terrifying stuff, particularly when one has to be concerned about safe passage out.

FRENCH EMBASSY, NIGER pic.twitter.com/IQkZRvNOnz

— The_Real_Fly (@The_Real_Fly) August 29, 2023

In addition to concerns about the French situation – what does Macron do or what options are left to do anything – is that the junta, besides ordering the French out, invited the security forces of Burkina Faso and Mali IN to help defend them.

Niger’s junta authorized troops from neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso to come to its defense and asked the French ambassador to leave the country Friday, raising the stakes in a standoff with other West African nations who are threatening force to reinstate Niger’s democratically elected president.

The junta leader, Brig. Gen. Abdrahmane Tchiani, signed two executive orders authorizing the “security forces of Burkina Faso and Mali to intervene on Niger territory in the event of aggression,” senior junta official Oumarou Ibrahim Sidi said late Thursday, after hosting a delegation from the two countries in the Nigerien capital, Niamey.

Burkina Faso said they are more than willing to help…

Burkina Faso’s Cabinet has given the government the green light to send troops to help defend neighboring Niger, where the military deposed President Mohamed Bazoum about a month ago.

A Cabinet statement late Wednesday said the government was allowed to deploy a military contingent to Niger “in line with our country’s strategic commitments.”

“Without warmongering, it must be noted that this commitment is made to prevent and in the best interest of our fight against terrorism, a deep aspiration of the Burkinabe people,” said Defense Minister Col. Maj. Kassoum Coulibaly.

“What affects Niger’s security fundamentally affects the security of Burkina Faso.”

…as that anti-Western, Wagner group-aligned country would be delighted to be able to take a shot at the ECOWAS alliance, and symbolically thumb their noses at colonial American and European powers.

…Seidik Abba, a Nigerien researcher and president of the Paris-based International Center for Reflection and Studies on the Sahel, said the junta is trying to reinforce its position and rebuff attempts by West Africa’s regional bloc, ECOWAS, to pressure the military government to reverse the coup.

“The risk of a war (between Niger and the regional bloc) is still pretty high,” said Nate Allen, an associate professor at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies. He said the junta is aligning with the regimes in Mali and Burkina Faso in “a very strong anti-Western and pro-authoritarian orientation.”

Now with their aggressive stance towards France ratcheting up international tensions, and their active disregard for any sort of diplomatic niceties, the junta could well trigger a regional conflict. The situation is a powder keg of opposing ideologies and egos, with competing outside interests stirring the pot.