African leaders and officials salute during the Sahel summit on regional cooperation and security.
Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso have set up their own bloc. Each is ruled by a military government – and that’s led to a split from the larger West African regional bloc, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The three military rulers have pledged to support each other against outside threats and internal security challenges. Meanwhile, West Africa’s economic and political bloc has launched a formal push to convince three junta-led member states to shelve their joint breakaway plan, with Senegal’s president Bassirou Diomaye Faye appointed special envoy to the disaffected nations.
SOURCE: SEMAFOR