Niger Coup: Military action in Niger would cause "destabilization," - Russia.

Russia urged against military action in Niger on Friday, a day after West African leaders announced they would assemble a "standby" army to restore the president deposed in a coup.

"We believe that a military solution to the crisis in Niger could lead to a protracted confrontation in that African country, as well as a sharp destabilization of the situation in the Sahara-Sahel region as a whole," Russia's foreign ministry stated, according to AFP.

Recall that West African leaders approved the deployment of a "standby force to restore constitutional order" in Niger, which will take place as soon as feasible, according to Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara.

The ECOWAS regional group did not specify the size of the force that will be sent or the timeline for taking action against the military commanders who took control of Niger two weeks ago, deposing President Mohamed Bazoum.

On his way back to Abidjan from the emergency meeting in Nigeria's capital Abuja, Ouattara stated, "The Chiefs of Staff will have other conferences to finalise things, but they have the agreement of the Conference of Heads of State for the operation to start as soon as possible."

According to Ouattara, Ivory Coast would supply a battalion of 850 to 1,100 troops, together with soldiers from Nigeria and Benin, and other nations will join them.

"We are determined to restore President Bazoum to his functions."

Earlier, ECOWAS Commission President Omar Touray confirmed the deployment of the bloc's army in Abuja.

In a statement issued on Thursday, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken advocated for a nonviolent end to the coup, applauding the "determination of ECOWAS to explore all options for the peaceful resolution of the crisis."

He told reporters earlier Thursday that the group was "playing a key role in making clear the imperative of a return to constitutional order, and we very much support ECOWAS' leadership and work on this."

Former colonial power France has stated that it "fully supports all of the conclusions" made by ECOWAS, according to the foreign ministry.

Even while the conference was taking place, Niger's new military authorities proceeded to solidify their position and signaled greater defiance by forming a new government.

Prime Minister Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine, a civilian, will lead a 21-member government, with generals from the new military ruling council controlling the defense and interior ministries.

The coup leaders have previously ignored an ECOWAS deadline set a week ago to release Bazoum, who has been held since July 26, or risk military involvement.

Nigeria's President Bola Tinubu, who presided over the crisis conference in Abuja, declared, "All is not lost yet" for a "peaceful solution, as a roadmap to restore democracy and stability."

But he added: “No option is taken off the table, including the use of force as a last resort.”

Before the closed-door talks, Tinubu had insisted that “we prioritise diplomatic negotiations and dialogue as the bedrock of our approach”.

– ‘We must engage’ –

The 15-nation bloc is struggling to stem military takeovers that have now swept through four of its members in three years, potentially heralding fresh instability in a region struggling for years against jihadist insurgencies.

Before the meeting, Tinubu acknowledged that “the seven-day ultimatum we issued during the first summit has not yielded the desired outcome”.

An attempt this week to send a joint team of ECOWAS, UN and African Union representatives to Niger’s capital Niamey was rejected by the coup leaders.

“We must engage all parties involved, including the coup leaders, in earnest discussions to convince them to relinquish power and reinstate President Bazoum,” Tinubu said.