Tensions between the AES and ECOWAS have been prevalent for most of the year.
However, a few recent developments may have intensified said tension as members of the AES have now put their security forces on high alert.
This, coupled with the fact that ECOWAS decided to extend the exit of the AES member countries by six months has heightened friction even more.
The AES pointed out efforts to restructure terrorist organizations in the Sahel, the Lake Chad Basin, and several border regions, as seen on Sputnik.
They claim that foreign governments provide these terrorists with logistical and financial support.
The area is designated as “a single theater of military operations,” and security and defense personnel are now on high alert.
The three-state regional group has also called on its populations to “redouble their vigilance” and to “reject proposals for enrollment in terrorist groups.”
ECOWAS vs the AES
The three West African countries that make up the AES sharply exited ECOWAS in January of this year, citing the organization’s alleged lack of support for their efforts to combat terrorism, and its subservience to former colonial power France.
The three countries agreed that they no longer want to be a member of the West African Bloc and have deposed past administrations through coups.
Their resignation from ECOWAS elicited an instant response from the organization, which stated that it would take the appropriate procedures to return the countries to their original bloc, including imposing economic sanctions on such states.
The announcement was made by the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Alieu Touray, on the 15 of December during the 66th Ordinary Session of Heads of State and Government in Abuja.
Touray stated that the withdrawal of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger would take effect between January 29, 2025, and July 29, 2025, allowing for six months for further negotiations.
