Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger have withdrawn from the ECOWAS community

The leaders of the military governments of the countries of the Sahel region in western Africa announced this yesterday and called the decision as independent and strengthening the self-governing powers of these countries. The three countries which are former French colonies and which have been run by military regimes since 2020, have been at odds with the ECOWAS leadership for a long time now. The three West African countries were previously suspended from ECOWAS membership, while Mali and Niger were severely restricted by the regional community. The military took over the reins of power in Niger in July last year following a military coup, while a similar coup will take place in Burkina Faso in 2022 and Mali in 2020. In September last year, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger signed a tripartite defense agreement, binding the three Sahel countries to help each other in the event of a military attack against any of them. The joint security agreement of the three West African countries was named "Union of Sahel Countries."