Right, so this story really does underline just how much credibility the US and the Biden administration are losing their clout on the global stage over what is going on in the Middle East and that this extends beyond that region, it’s becoming a global issue for America, because for as much as the US are getting rinsed for basically being Israel’s biggest cheerleaders, they are still going around acting like they are the planet police for peace and prosperity, despite actually being the leading cause of anything but and to that end, they’ve been given short shrift in no uncertain terms in Africa, for trying to lay down the law to one nation there as to who they can and cannot do deals with themselves. Well with the US arming Israel and keeping the genocide in Gaza going, the Africans were having none of it, and they’ve just thrown the US army out on their ear, but to listen to mainstream sources, you’d think it was all Russia’s fault.
Right, so the US are getting chucked out of a West African nation and the way most media are telling it, it’s all down to Russian interference, but if you listen to what the actual government concerned have to say, they tell a slightly different story.
We are in Niger, you don’t hear much about Niger in the news do you? But the US have given them major beef and they aren’t having a bar it. Following on from the events of 9/11, there was of course the war on terror, pursuing bin-Laden, Al-Qaeda, which rose to prominence following the deposing of Saddam Hussein in Iraq, then ISIL, but later on after they were largely routed in the Middle East, they found strongholds in northern and western Africa, the removal of Gaddafi in Libya for example, led to a power vacuum which terrorist elements soon filled, but equally the instability in many West African nations enabled them to take root their too and so by 2013, the US established a deployment of troops, around 100 of them to start with, but this has since grown to nearly 1000, in order to deal with Isil and Al-Qaeda groups that were terrorising the region and were basing themselves out of a region called The Sahel, which is like a belt across northern Africa, stretching from the Atlantic Ocean all the way to the Red Sea, and is basically the boundary between the Sahara Desert and green more tropical equatorial regions further south.
Co-operation to eliminate terrorist threats in Niger, by terrorist groups displaced from the Middle East, this should have been win-win situation for both. Niger had US troops on able to deal with these groups who were killing their people now and the US had a base from which to conduct further missions to deal with these groups for good. OK, fine. As long as that is actually what happens. Well, the accusation now, is that it hasn’t. That the US have not dealt with these groups properly, adequately, yet maintain a presence in Niger, without living up to their side of the bargain. You can understand they might be a bit aggrieved about that.
Now despite the US presence, and what hasn’t helped the US position certainly, is the fact that they apparently were sat on their hands whilst a military coup took place in Niger last year, which deposed the socialist and first ever Arab leader of Niger, Mohamed Bazoum. I daresay the ousting of a socialist wasn’t something the US were going to cry much over, so you might wonder if they chose to let this happen or were they slacking off so much they just didn’t notice? Whatever the truth of the matter, things have blown up in their faces somewhat, as the military takeover and the self proclaimed President of the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland, bit of a mouthful, Abdourahamane Tchiani. At this point the US appeared to notice something had changed, didn’t it seems like the idea of a military takeover, they don’t have a long history of being good news, not to mention there’s nothing democratic about them of course and chose to freeze security support and their counter terrorism activities. The new Nigerien administration then decided to cut all diplomatic ties off to the US, then come last month, Niger demanded all US troops leave the country now as well. Throw them out and if the mainstream are to be believed, they’re now going to be replaced by Russia. A Putin plot no doubt! It has a lot more to do with the fact the US had withdrawn their security and counter-terrorism duties, yet still chose to remain in the country, despite that literally being the reason they were allowed to stay there. That is the extent of most mainstream coverage of why Niger are throwing out the US, but it isn’t all of it. Despite essentially squatting in their country at this point, the Biden administration, were still trying to dictate who the new administration of Niger, could open up diplomatic ties with. We’ve seen this before. The US saying if you talk to them I won’t be your best friend, its playground stuff, but when Niger are getting no benefit from you being in their country any more AND you’re trying to tell them who they can have relations with instead, it isn’t going to wash. BUT, it isn’t Russia that are the issue here, it isn’t Russia the US have apparently been warning Niger off over, that’s just a very convenient narrative for the media to cover, because it is very easy and very popular to hate Russia, hate Putin, but when the truth drags us back to the Middle East again, all of a sudden it becomes much less clear cut. You see it isn’t JUST Niger talking to Russia that has given Biden and Co so much consternation, it is because Niger is talking to Iran too. Amazing that so many media outlets can mention Russia but not Iran.
Iran of course are opposed to Israel, not least because they are aiding for example the Houthis in Yemen and their blockade of the Red Sea, but of course Israel attacked their embassy in Syria and retaliation was meted out, the US shot down drones and missiles from Iran flying through Iraqi airspace, coming to Israel’s aid. Niger are not pro Israel, they had bilateral relations up until 2002 before they were terminated, Niger has for a long time viewed Israel and Palestine in exactly the same light as apartheid South Africa, they voted yes in the famous 1975 UN resolution which determined that Zionism is a form of racism and their views since have not shifted. Now it seems allying themselves with a more proactive opponent of the Zionist regime really does have the US in a flap, but the US support for Israel given what has happened for the last 7 months, well, I wouldn’t want you on my doorstep either! Here’s an excerpt from Iranian media outlet Press TV, which quotes an article from the Washington Post, however the US outlet of course was one that omitted to mention Iran:
‘Niger’s prime minister says the termination of military cooperation and bilateral relations between his country and the United States was due to American threats and Washington’s opposition to the African nation's partnership with Iran and Russia.
Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine told The Washington Post in an interview published on Tuesday that the US had tried to dictate what countries Niamey can have close relations with and had not justified its military presence in the West African country.
Underlining the US failure to combat terrorism in Niger and the Sahel region for a decade, Zeine said, “The Americans stayed on our soil, doing nothing while the terrorists killed people and burned towns. It is not a sign of friendship to come on our soil but let the terrorists attack us.”
Zeine said the United States' tone and behaviour toward Nigerien officials were the “primary reason” for the broken relations.
The Nigerien prime minister criticized US officials’ call on Niamey not to engage closely with Iran and Russia as they were two of Washington’s adversaries.
Zeine said he had been given an ultimatum by the US administration to have security with Washington or be close to Tehran and Moscow.’
If you go off with Russia and Iran we can’t be friends anymore threaten the US and Niger basically say, well go home then. It’s like Nelson Mandela said:
‘One of the mistakes, which some political analysts make, is to think that their enemies should be our enemies.’
It’s one more in a growing list of examples of the US being on the wrong side of global consensus right now and again showing that actually more and more countries are growing not just fed up with them, but no longer fear them either. The US failed to do what was asked of them, they had a position in West Africa no doubt for their own ends as well, Israel is their foothold in the Middle East and why they are so devoted to them, is for that reason, but with Niger having this ongoing issue with national security amidst remnants of Al-Qaeda and ISIL still active, if the US can’t do the job they promised, yet are arrogant and entitled enough to try to dictate domestic policy to you when in your country, then they aren’t much of a friend. This appears to be the position of the Nigerien government right now, this is the point they’ve reached and the US are being thrown out over it and frankly with their immovable attitude regarding Israel, regarding Iran and Russia and by all means this isn’t a video extolling those countries virtues, there absolutely are plenty of reasons to criticise them, however no matter which way you look at this, the US have again only got themselves to blame for what has happened in Niger and you have to wonder, well who is it going to be next? How many more diplomatic crashes are there going to be, because of Israel, because fundamentally, this fall out, this cut off of diplomatic and military ties now, all comes down to the US placing their Israel relationship above their relationships with others.
And yet despite attacking Iran and Niger considering entering into diplomatic talks with the theocracy, the US has actually been begging them for another favour and AGAIN it all comes down to helping Israel, even as the genocide rolls on, the brass neck of them is crazy, find out all about that story in this video here and I’ll hopefully catch you on the next vid. Cheers folks.