After negotiations on legal immunity for members of the Bundeswehr failed, Germany gives up its air transport base in Niger. The base in Niamey is to be closed by August 31 and the soldiers are to be relocated back to Germany.
The Defense Ministry announced this on Saturday. The government in Berlin will “reassess” the cooperation with the West African country. “The draft agreement submitted by Niger cannot serve as a basis for negotiations on a status agreement – neither in terms of character nor in terms of content,” the ministry wrote to the parliamentary group leaders in the Bundestag. “No immunity will be granted to German soldiers. At the same time, we do not have time to negotiate a new status agreement – the positions are too far apart for that,” the report continued.
The base was the logistical hub of the terminated UN mission MINUSMA (Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali). As a transshipment point for material and personnel, the base continues to offer opportunities for action in the strategically important region – for example in the case of evacuation missions and emergency situations – and also shows Germany’s military presence. Russia is becoming increasingly militarily active in the region.
Niger was the last democratic partner in the region
The military took over Niger last July. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius advocated continuing cooperation with the coup plotters on a smaller scale and under certain conditions. After the coups in neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso, Niger was long seen as the last democratic partner of Europe and the US in the Sahel region in the fight against terrorism. Islamist terrorist militias close to Al-Qaeda and IS have been spreading in the region for years. Russia has recently increased its influence in the region.
The US is also withdrawing
This weekend, the US will also leave its base in Niamey before it has to leave its drone base in the desert city of Agadez, which is strategically important for monitoring the entire region, in the coming weeks. All US troops are expected to have left the country by September 15. Niamey stopped cooperating, accusing Washington of arrogance. As in Mali and Burkina Faso, French anti-terrorist forces had to withdraw last year in the serious dispute between Paris and the army.
Source: Krone
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