Due to the current situation in Niger, multiple international partners such as the European Union, France, and other European countries have suspended their aid to the country. On the American side, the possibility of aid suspension has been brought up, but no action has been taken as of yet.
A week after the warning from US Secretary of State Antony Blinken regarding the restoration of democratic order, a decision has been made. Only a portion of the aid has been suspended, with food and humanitarian assistance remaining unaffected. The impact of this decision is still being measured.
In 2022, the United States provided more than $200 million in aid to Niger. For the 2023 fiscal year, which will end at the end of September in the United States, 130 million dollars have already been paid. The shortfall is therefore potentially significant.
Significant Military Aid
Since 2012, the various American administrations have devoted more than half a billion dollars to equip and train the soldiers who have taken power in Niamey. Nearly 1,100 American soldiers are on the spot, mainly on the air base of Agadez, the construction of which cost more than 100 million dollars. It is the only American base on the continent, apart from that of Djibouti. The press release specifies that the security operations continue.
According to American law, all this must stop in the event of a coup against a democratically elected power. This no doubt explains, in part, the hesitation of the Biden administration to characterize the situation in the country in this way and to completely cut off its cooperation with him.