The junta in Niger has asked that the head of the U.N. diplomatic mission there leave the nation within 72 hours, alleging that the U.N. excluded Niger from last month’s General Assembly.
The army commanders who overthrew the government in a coup in July did not send a delegate to the New York Summit of World Leaders.
In Niamey, a U.N. representative said she had no immediate response.
Niger’s foreign ministry accused the U.N. in a statement dated Oct. 10 of engaging in “underhanded manoeuvres” that were encouraged by France to hinder full participation in the U.N. General Assembly and in agency meetings that followed in Vienna and Riyadh.
Louise Aubin, the U.N. resident coordinator, has been told to leave by the government as a result, according to the statement.
The junta follows a pattern set by neighboring Mali and Burkina Faso, whose soldiers overthrew their governments, leading to the countries’ growing hostility toward the United Nations and its erstwhile colonial master France.
The French ambassador and troops have already left Niger.
Last year, Mali terminated a ten-year-old U.N. peacekeeping deployment, while Burkina Faso removed its resident coordinator.
An Islamist insurgency that has deteriorated in recent years has forced army commanders to seize control while promising to increase security in all three nations.
Following the coups, there have been allegations that France had excessive power in its former colonies and a change in focus toward Russia as a strategic ally. France has refuted using improper influence.
