West African leaders have appointedgy Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye as an envoy of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) at a summit in Abuja, Nigeria.
Military leaders of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso ruled out rejoining the regional bloc, accusing ECOWAS of failing its mandate and pledging to consolidate their union, the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), amid fractured relations with neighbours.
The tri-country meeting comes ahead of an ECOWAS summit in Nigeria, where regional heads of state are scheduled to convene. Analysts point out the divisions within ECOWAS, now recognized as the primary political authority among its 15 member states.
