Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso’s withdrawal from ECOWAS: The Revised ECOWAS Treaty and withdrawal with ‘immediate effect’
Posted: 5 March, 2024 | Author: AfricLaw | Filed under: Marko Svicevic | Tags: Authority of Heads of State and Government, Burkina Faso, Economic Community of West African States, ECOWAS, ECOWAS Commission, ECOWAS withdrawal, immediate effect, Liptako-Gourma Charter, Mali, military coups, military interventions, military takeovers, Niger, regional peace, sanctions, security, Sovereignty, suspended, treaty law framework, withdrawal | Leave a commentAuthor: Marko Svicevic
Lecturer and Researcher, Centre for International Humanitarian and Operational Law, Faculty of Law, Palacky University, Olomouc
On 28 January 2024, the military leaders of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso simultaneously announced their withdrawal from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) with ‘immediate effect’. Although the move is not all too surprising given rising tensions between the bloc and the three States, it is a historical and significant development in the region. All three States were suspended from ECOWAS following military takeovers; and they had faced varying degrees of sanctions in the last three years.