According to foreign policy leader Josep Borrell, EU defence ministers need to evaluate the situation and change their approach to these African nations.
After soldiers from the formerly French colony said they had taken control earlier, the situation in the Central African nation of Gabon will be discussed by the European Union’s defence ministers, according to Josep Borrell, the bloc’s head of foreign policy.
Borrell stated as much at a conference of EU defence ministers in Toledo, Spain, which was covered by Reuters. “If this is confirmed, it is another military coup that increases instability in the entire region.”
On national television early on Wednesday, a group of Gabonese soldiers said they had disbanded state institutions and nullified the outcome of the nation’s contested elections.
The action was taken after Ali Bongo, the long-time leader of Gabon, was declared the winner of last week’s presidential election and given the go-ahead to rule for a third term.
In their statement, the troops criticised Bongo’s “irresponsible, unpredictable governance,” saying that during his 14 years in office, social cohesion had deteriorated and that this risked bringing about instability in the nation.
Coming only a few weeks after soldiers overthrew the government in Niger, the coup in Gabon is the most recent in a string of military takeovers in Africa in recent years.
Despite pressure from the 15-nation West African Regional bloc, ECOWAS, the new military authorities of Niger, a second former French colony, have refused to free ousted President Mohamed Bazoum and reestablish democracy.
In case diplomatic attempts are unsuccessful, the regional administration has mobilised a standby force for a military intervention backed by France against the coup leaders in Niamey.
Mali and Burkina Faso, two nations dominated by the military, have issued statements cautioning against using force against their neighbours in Niger.
Borrell expressed alarm about the situation in Gabon, which has a population of just under 2.5 million, and added that coups in other regions of the continent are “a big issue for Europe.”
The entire region, starting with the Central African Republic, followed by Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger, and possibly Gabon, is in a very difficult situation, and undoubtedly, the [EU] ministers… have to give it some serious thought as to what is happening there and how we can improve our policy with respect to these countries.
