The authorities of Burkina Faso, Mali and Guinea call on ECOWAS and the African Union to lift the sanctions imposed on their countries since the coups. This was the outcome of the summit of the foreign ministers of the three countries on 9 February in Ouagadougou.
The Ministries of Foreign Affairs of Mali, Guinea and Burkina Faso held a meeting on Thursday 9 February in Ouagadougou. The declaration issued at the end of this meeting demonstrates the will of the three countries in transition to strengthen their ties of friendship and cooperation. Indeed, the three foreign ministers “agreed to pool their efforts and undertake joint initiatives for the lifting of the suspension measures and other restrictions” taken by ECOWAS and the African Union in their regard.
Thus, the ministers of the three countries “deplored mechanically imposed sanctions that often fail to address the complex root causes of political change”, the statement said. The three countries have in fact been suspended from the statutory bodies of ECOWAS and the African Union since the military gained access to the supreme magistracy through putsches.
During the meeting, the Burkinabe, Malian and Guinean authorities examined several issues, including the success of the transition process leading to a return to a peaceful and secure constitutional order, the promotion of good governance, the pooling of resources to meet security, economic and humanitarian challenges, the strengthening of their tripartite relationship by revitalising the Bamako-Conakry-Ouagadougou axis, as well as consultation on sub-regional, regional and international issues.
On the security front, for example, the three countries “noted the need to combine their efforts and those of the countries of the sub-region and the region to deal with this scourge.
Turning to economic issues, the ministers agreed that it is in Conakry that the other two countries wish to obtain supplies of hydrocarbons, electrical energy and other consumer products.
“Measuring the scale of the challenge at regional level and the interconnectedness of the sources of destabilisation, they call for coherent action at regional level on the basis of bilateral efforts already underway.
While encouraging the search for endogenous solutions to the challenges facing their countries, the Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to examine any partnership that respects their sovereignty and meets the needs of their populations. To this end, they reiterated their commitment to the principles of non-interference in the internal affairs of States.
