STORY: ECOWAS standby force ready to go to Niger: official
DATELINE: Aug. 20, 2023
LENGTH: 00:03:10
LOCATION: Accra
CATEGORY: POLITICS

SHOTLIST:
1. various of participants of ECOWAS defense chiefs' meeting
2. SOUNDBITE (English): ABDEL-FATAU MUSAH, ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security
3. various of defense chiefs' meeting

STORYLINE:

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) standby force is ready to go to Niger any time the order is given, a senior ECOWAS official said here late Friday.
   
Abdel-Fatau Musah, ECOWAS commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace, and Security, made the comment during a press briefing after a two-day meeting of the ECOWAS defense chiefs in Ghana's capital Accra.
   
Musah said all the necessary preparations had concluded, and the defense chiefs would present their report to the leaders of the subregional bloc for further instruction.

SOUNDBITE (English): ABDEL-FATAU MUSAH, ECOWAS Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security
"We have already agreed and fine-tuned what to be required for the intervention. We are ready to go anytime the order is given. This is the second extraordinary meeting and the final meeting before deployment, and as soon as our heads of state and government are satisfied with the report that have be presented, our troops across the region are ready and they are ready to respond to the call of duty of the region."
   
He added that all options were still on the table for finding a peaceful resolution to the crisis.
   
Musah called for the unconditional release of the deposed President Mohamed Bazoum, his family, and members of his government who were still in detention in Niger.
   
A mediation team from the subregional bloc, he said, was expected in Niamey this Saturday to engage with the military junta on possible ways of ending the political crisis.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Accra.
(XHTV)