No immunity

Germany gives up base in Niger

A German air force transport plane in Niger(Bild: APA/AFP)

After negotiations on legal immunity for members of the Bundeswehr failed, Germany is giving up its air transport base in Niger. The base in Niamey is to be closed by August 31 and the soldiers transferred back to Germany.

This was announced by the Ministry of Defense on Saturday. The government in Berlin will "reassess" cooperation with the West African country. "The draft agreement submitted by Niger cannot serve as a basis for negotiations on a status agreement - neither in terms of character nor content," the ministry wrote to the parliamentary group leaders in the Bundestag. "It does not grant immunities for German soldiers. At the same time, we do not have the time to negotiate a new status agreement - the positions are too far apart for that," it continued.

The base was the logistical hub of the UN mission MINUSMA (Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali), which has come to an end. As a transshipment point for material and personnel, the base continues to open up options for action in the strategically important region - for example in the event of evacuation operations and emergencies - and also demonstrates Germany's military presence. Russia is increasingly active militarily in the region.

Niger was the last democratic partner in the region
Last July, the military took power in Niger. Defense Minister Boris Pistorius advocated continuing cooperation with the coup leaders to a lesser extent and under certain conditions. Following the coups in the neighboring states of Mali and Burkina Faso, Niger was long considered the last democratic partner of Europe and the USA in the Sahel region in the fight against terrorism. Islamist terrorist militias close to al-Qaeda and IS have been spreading in the region for years. Russia has recently increased its influence in the region.

USA also withdraws
This weekend, the USA is also leaving its base in Niamey, before having to vacate its drone base in the desert city of Agadez, which is strategically important for monitoring the entire region, in the coming weeks. All US troops are to have left the country by September 15. Niamey terminated the cooperation because they had accused Washington of arrogance. French counter-terrorism troops had to withdraw from Mali and Burkina Faso last year, as they did from Paris, in a serious dispute between Paris and the military.