ECOWAS: The Standby Force (interventionist) reconverted into a counter-terrorism unit
The so-called ECOWAS Standby Force will henceforth be engaged in operations aimed at eradicating the terrorism that is plaguing West Africa, according to the final communiqué of the 64ᵉ ordinary session of the Conference of Heads of State and Government of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) held on Sunday 10 December in Abuja, Nigeria.
The final communiqué reads: «The conference orders the Commission to resume without delay measures aimed at activating the ECOWAS Standby Force in kinetic mode, to conduct counter-terrorism operations in areas infested by armed terrorist groups (ATGs)»
This announcement comes at a time when the countries affected by this imported war are trying to cope as best they can.
It should be noted that, faced with this terrorist threat, ECOWAS supported the creation of the G5 Sahel in 2014 and its joint force (in 2017), designed to curb the phenomenon.
However, with the political tensions that have emerged between some Sahelian-led countries and European countries, led by France, the G5 Sahel is now an empty shell.
With regard to the new operations of the pending force, ECOWAS says it has already instructed its commission to speed up the process.
To this end, a meeting of the finance and defence ministers of the Member States is due to be held shortly to «determine the modalities for mobilising internal financial, human and material resources on a compulsory basis, with a view to supporting the deployment of the regional counter-terrorism force».
How is this collaboration to be achieved if the three States most affected by terrorism are already part of an alliance that ECOWAS has criticised?
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Neil Camara
