Can anyone sum up the Niger conflict recently?
So what's happening is basically the next step in Africa freeing itself from its old colonial masters who are still pulling the strings behind the scenes through puppet leaders. The West isn't as strong as it used to be, and at the same time, countries like Russia and China are getting more powerful. This means countries in Africa are getting the chance to finally break away and do their own thing.
This isn't just happening in Niger, but all over the place. We've seen it recently in nearby countries like Mali and Burkina Faso, and it's been a pretty steady trend.
What makes Niger a bit more special, though, is that it's like a missing puzzle piece for Russia and China, helping them connect their influence from the Middle East all the way to the Atlantic (create some kind of a belt as illustrated below).
Plus, Niger is an especially big deal for France because a third of their electricity comes from nuclear power, and a whole lot of that depends on Niger's uranium. It is even more important now because France is already under the energy and inflation crisis presently.
Back in the day, West Africa was the heart of all the colonial business because of its geography and resources, so it's the last place where the West still has a pretty tight grip on Africa. Everywhere else, though, people are more or less free of their hegemony, and West Africa is the last place.
The West is trying to hold onto that isolated power and maybe even start a war to put a puppet leader back in charge in Niger. But, there are other countries nearby that aren't keen on Western influence, and they've said they'd have Niger's back, they are mentioned in the Tweets below (those red countries basically and those circled on the map).
If things get real and war breaks out, it could turn into a huge proxy clash over control of this big chunk of Africa. If that happens, I think that Russia, China, and Iran, others, would probably also step up to proxy help Niger and its allies against the West and anyone else still under the West's control (ECOWAS). Algeria is also already pretty much secured in terms of allowing weapons to pass through their territory to help Niger.