Niger: Russian Foreign Ministry condemns airport attack

In a statement released on February 2nd, Russia’s Foreign Ministry has condemned the attack on the Hamani International Airport in Niger’s capital, Niamey, on January 29th, as reported by RFI and agencies on February 4th.

Niger’s junta leader, General Abdourahamane Tchiani, praised “Russian partners” in the aftermath of the attack, saying they had “defended their security sector” during the attack.

Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the attack on the airport, which is a strategic hub that hosts military bases, the headquarters of the Niger-Burkina Faso-Mali Joint Force and a uranium stockpile, which is currently central to a dispute with a French nuclear company, Orano, that Niger’s junta has sought to nationalise.

According to state television, Nigerien forces responded to the attack quickly, killing 20 of the perpetrators and arresting 11 others.

On February 1st, the IS propaganda wing, Amaq News Agency, broadcast footage of an explosion inside a hangar housing a helicopter, while other aircraft were ablaze, and gunfire damaged several passenger planes.

Despite IS claiming responsibility for the attack, Tchiani has accused France, Benin and the Ivory Coast of “sponsoring” the attack; he provided no evidence to support these allegations during a televised address in the hours following the January 29th attack.

Niger, Benin and the Ivory Coast are former French colonies, along with Mali and Burkina Faso. Despite this shared history, Niger and its junta-led allies, Mali and Burkina Faso, have repeatedly accused Benin and the Ivory Coast of being French proxies because of their ties to Paris.

In recent years, Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have cut ties with French and Western powers, instead seeking strategic and security partnerships with Russia.

Until the 2023 military coup, Niger had been a Western ally in the Sahel region. However, since Tchiani’s rise to power, Niger has increasingly aligned with Russia in the fight against jihadist insurgencies, which are a regional threat throughout the Sahel.

Although Russian soldiers do not accompany Nigerien soldiers in the field, as they do in Mali, they are present for maintenance operations of equipment purchased from Russia.

Following their rejection of Western ties, Niger, Burkina Faso and Mali are all reliant on military support from Russia, which Russia provides in exchange for access to the Sahel’s natural resources, such as gold.

RFI and agencies, Maghrebi.org