Burkina Faso, Guinea, and Mali Submitted Readmission Applications to the African Union

The African Union (AU) was asked by Burkina Faso, Mali, and Guinea to lift their suspensions as member states of the organization.

“The three heads of diplomacy expressed to the AU Commission Chairperson, Moussa Faki Mahamat, and the AU Commission’s Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, Bankole Adeoye, their peoples’ frustration with the AU’s manifest lack of support in a difficult context characterized by attacks by terrorist groups and displaced populations in both Burkina Faso and Mali,” the Burkina Faso government said in a statement issued from Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, the headquarters of that African organization.

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The heads of diplomacy of Burkina Faso, Olivia Rouamba, Guinea Conakry, Morissanda Kouyate, and Mali, Abdoulaye Diop, asked the African Union to “reconsider” their admissions to the bloc

The request was made as part of the 42nd ordinary session of the AU Executive Council, made up of foreign ministers and other member state representatives, ahead of the organization’s 36th ordinary summit of heads of state and government, which takes place this weekend in Addis Ababa.

“We find it inconceivable that issues related to security and humanitarian action in West Africa are discussed without the presence of Burkina Faso and Mali,” Rouamba lamented.

“We ask that attention be paid to the suffering of our peoples and consequently support the transitional governments in their efforts to restore the conditions necessary for a return to constitutional order,” the Burkina Faso minister added.

In addition, they said they have “a well-defined timeline and a transparent agenda”

The heads of diplomacy of Burkina Faso, Guinea Conakry, and Mali held a summit in Ouagadougou earlier this month at which they agreed to join forces to attempt reintegration into the African Union.

In a joint communiqué released after that February 10th summit, which took place in Burkina Faso’s capital, the three countries said they “coordinate efforts and carry out common initiatives for the withdrawal of suspension measures and other restrictions,” including economic sanctions imposed against the three coup-stricken states.

In the note, they also noted that the measures by the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) “affect populations already affected by insecurity and political instability” and “deprive” both organizations “of the contribution of the three countries, necessary to overcome major challenges.”

The three heads of diplomacy of the three states reaffirmed their “commitment” to “the objectives and principles of ECOWAS and the African Union

The ministers stressed that these measures “represent an attack against sub-regional and African solidarity, which represents the essential point of integration, regional and continental cooperation.”

“The suspension decisions impede the participation of these countries in ECOWAS and AU organs, particularly those that address major challenges, such as security, humanitarian issues, and lasting economic development,” they further stressed in the joint statement, signed by the three ministers.

“In the framework of the fight against insecurity in the Sahelo-Saharan strip, the delegations of Burkina, Guinea, and Mali stress the need to combine their efforts and those of the countries of the subregion and the region to address this scourge,” they warned.

In this regard, they called for “coherence” in actions “at the regional level, building on the bilateral operations already underway,” while pointing to the “institutionalization of a permanent framework for consultation between the three countries” and the launch of “high-level political and diplomatic consultations on the Bamako-Conakry-Ouagadougou axis.”

Finally, the heads of diplomacy of the three states reaffirmed their “commitment” to “the objectives and principles of ECOWAS and the AU” and to “respond to the aspirations of the populations” of the three countries, including with programs “for the development of trade, transport, obtaining needs, professional transformation, rural development, mining, culture, arts and the fight against insecurity.”

In Mali, there was a coup in August 2020 led by Colonel Assimi Goïta, who staged another coup in May 2021 after disagreements with the government and is currently the country’s transitional president.

Guinea Conakry has been led by the military junta headed by Colonel Mamadi Doumbouya since the September 5th, 2021 coup in that country.

Burkina Faso’s military junta is now led by Captain Ibrahim Traoré, who staged a palace coup in September 2022 against the then-leader, Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, who had already staged a coup eight months earlier.

These military coups led the AU to suspend the three countries’ participation as member states.

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(Featured image by Yohannes Minas via Unsplash)

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First published in Africa 21 Digital, a third-party contributor translated and adapted the article from the original. In case of discrepancy, the original will prevail.

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