US scrambles to keep control of vital air base following Niger coup
AGADEZ, Niger — On a swath of land in the Sahara, U.S. Air Base 201 stands on the outskirts of a remote city in one of the world’s poorest nations, its role more elusive than ever since its completion nearly six years ago.
Most of the drones that once monitored jihadi activities in volatile African nations have been grounded. Most of the Americans posted at the $110 million base, near the city, Agadez, Niger, sit idle, epitomizing the uncertain future of United States’ counterterrorism efforts in West Africa.
After a military coup in Niger in July, the United States and its European partners halted their cooperation with the country, which over the past decade had become one of the biggest recipients of security assistance and development aid in Africa.
As the ruling Nigerien junta consolidates its grip on power, the Biden administration now faces wrenching new challenges in its fight against Islamic militants in Africa. Chief among them is how to resume operations at U.S. Air Base 201 — the top military asset in a region emerging as a global center of terrorist activity.
Having labeled the takeover a coup, the United States is required by law to suspend security operations and development aid to Niger and cannot fully resume them until democracy is restored. So while American officials have signaled they would like to reestablish security cooperation with Niger’s government, doing so with the former Nigerien president, Mohamed Bazoum, under house arrest will require their threading a diplomatic needle.
Further complicating matters for Washington, European countries that invested hundreds of millions of dollars in aid and sent thousands of troops to Niger are divided on what to do next.
The European Union has suspended aid, and, at the request of Niger, about 2,000 European troops have departed the nation in recent months — leaving about 1,000 U.S. personnel as the only sizable Western presence in the nation. But several European nations have indicated recently that they are willing to normalize relations with the junta.
Then there is the looming threat of Russia, eager to exploit any breaches in relations between Niger and the Western nations to further expand its regional influence. The Kremlin, which recently signed a new defense agreement with Niger, is already the preferred security partner of two neighboring nations fighting Islamic rebellions, Mali and Burkina Faso. The three countries, all now run by military governments, have vowed to strengthen cooperation under a new security alliance.
“Russia is going to be there no matter what — whether the U.S. is at the table or not,” said Daniel Eizenga, a research fellow at the Africa Center for Strategic Studies, a Defense Department research institution.