On 1 August, GNU Minister of Foreign Affairs Najla al-Mangoush held a phone call with her Chadian counterpart about the situation in Niger. They both condemned the recent coup and the ‘disruption of Niger’s democratic development’. Al-Mangoush emphasised Libya’s support of the position of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on the crisis in Niger.
Meanwhile, Presidential Council (PC) Chair Mohammed Menfi received a message on the crisis in Niger from the Special Envoy of the President of Nigeria Bola Ahmed Tinubu which sought to explain ECOWAS’s course of action. An ECOWAS military intervention was cast as a realistic possibility. In response, Menfi underlined the importance of coordinated action by Niger’s eastern and northern neighbours (i.e. Libya and Chad) with ECOWAS to prevent destabilization of Niger and the entire region. The ECOWAS self-imposed deadline on military intervention expired on 6 August, with no decision having been announced.
Also on 1 August, PC Deputy Mohamed al-Lafi, Libyan Army Chief of Staff Mohammed Haddad, and Border Guard Commander Major Gen Nouri Sharata discussed the situation on the border with Niger. Al-Lafi and al-Haddad called for the formation of a Libyan Army-LNA Joint Force to secure the border.