Niger cuts ties with Russia and Turkey amid security woes

Niger, under the military regime which emerged and is maintained largely due to Russian support, unexpectedly ended its intelligence cooperation with Russia and Turkey. According to the Military Africa website, this decision, made under pressure, highlights serious security issues and internal divisions within the country.

Despite severing intelligence ties with Russia, Niger's security strategy remains linked to Moscow. Recently, Niger, along with Mali and Burkina Faso, entered into an agreement with the Russian space agency Roscosmos to acquire satellite services for telecommunications and surveillance. This initiative aims to bolster national security and manage the borders of the three nations. Apart from China, the military junta has virtually no alternative partners in the region.

This duality indicates a broader, complex approach whereby the junta balances internal challenges with commitments to the Sahel States Alliance. This pact, established in 2023 by Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso, seeks to deepen military cooperation among these internationally isolated states.

The primary reason for terminating the agreements was the substandard quality of the equipment and technicians provided by Russia and Turkey, particularly in the field of telephone conversation interception. In response to these shortcomings, Niger turned to a Moroccan company specialising in digital intelligence.

However, it emerged that the Moroccan company employs a French subcontractor, which is unacceptable for Niger due to its relationship with Paris. Consequently, the military junta ordered the immediate dismantling of the new system, leaving Niger without a robust intelligence framework.

Effective surveillance of the population is essential for any authoritarian regime, without which it won't endure. For this reason, the Niger military junta is attempting to address equipment shortages with the Presidential Guard. They have initiated discreet night patrols in key parts of the capital, Niamey.

Officers in civilian clothes, moving on foot and on motorbikes, monitor key locations such as the roundabout near the hospital, the Ministry of Justice, the Yantala district, the Congress Palace, and the embassy zone from the north.

The patrols are seen as a temporary measure, reflecting the weakened internal security of Niger under the rule of the military junta, known as CNSP. Furthermore, reports are surfacing of increasing opposition within parts of the military to the Niamey government, threatening the regime's stability.