July14 , 2026
Search

Three Military-Led States Leave ECOWAS

BUSINESSMarketsTrade
By Zack Oudrhiri
Why Three Military-led States left ECOWAS?

Related

EUROPE

Is Farage Heading for the Dustbin?

Nigel Farage quit Parliament to fight a rubbish-bin mascot for his own seat, wagering that grievance beats scrutiny in the court of public opinion.
Read more
EUROPE

Attal Uses Clavicular to Redefine His Political Brand

When a presidential candidate attacks an American streamer for mocking France, the influencer arena stops being parallel to politics and starts becoming part of it.
Read more
EUROPE

Buried Circle in Scotland Rewrites Violence Before Rome

Scotland's Buried Circle Rewrites Violence Before Rome Keywords: Neolithic Scotland, Machrie Moor, conflict, stone circles, archaeology, Roman Britain Brief: Standing stones in moorland mist; a bronze blade laid beside excavated earth.New discoveries at Machrie Moor and a major Edinburgh exhibition are pushing Scotland's prehistory away from pastoral myth and closer to a landscape of ritual, memory and organised violence.Scotland's ancient past is often imagined in stone, fog and silence. The newest archaeology suggests something noisier. Historic Environment Scotland this week announced the detection of a possible new prehistoric ring beneath the peat on the Isle of Arran: a circle of 12 pit-like anomalies forming a feature approximately 28 metres across, with space for two additional settings that may bring the original total to 14 posts or stones. Led by Dr Nick Hannon, the survey team used geophysical scanning equipment that detects underground disturbances without lifting a single turf. "The discovery of a new circle completely surpassed our expectations," Dr Hannon said. The find arrives at the same moment as the National Museum of Scotland opens Scotland's First Warriors, an exhibition tracing 4,000 years of conflict from the Neolithic to the Romans, covering more than 200 objects and asking how and why people fought, what weapons they used and what early conflict did to communities. Taken together, the two stories complicate the old image of early Scotland as a remote edge of prehistory waiting passively for civilisation to arrive. Ritual and Conflict Shared the Same Landscape It is tempting to separate ceremonial monuments from warfare, as if one belonged to religion and the other to politics. The new exhibition suggests prehistoric Scotland did not organise life so neatly. Machrie Moor's circles date from between roughly 3500 and 1500 BCE, and excavations have shown that several were preceded by timber circles in the same positions. The timber circle at Machrie Moor 1 has been radiocarbon-dated to 2030 ± 180 BCE, before the wooden posts were replaced with stone around 2000 BCE. The circles align with a prominent notch at the head of Machrie Glen, where the midsummer sunrise would have been visible, and later served as burial grounds for cremations and inhumations. The Edinburgh exhibition changes the emotional map of prehistoric Scotland. Stone circles were not necessarily built by peaceful mystics untouched by danger. They belonged to societies capable of both ceremony and force, burial and battle, symbolic order and lethal dispute. As the exhibition makes clear, interpersonal violence, fortification and organised conflict were real parts of Scotland's deep past, not marginal episodes but structural features of life on the moor. The landscape was never only sacred space. It was lived space. Before Rome, There Was Already History The most useful thing about these discoveries is that they pull Scottish prehistory out of the shadow of Rome. Too often, Britain's northern story begins when classical writers notice it. The Arran circle and the "first warriors" frame both insist that Scotland already had long, structured histories of monument-building, territorial meaning and conflict before Roman contact ever entered the picture. The Arran cursus, a ceremonial enclosure approximately 1.1 kilometres long sitting adjacent to the stone circles, underlines the landscape's sustained importance as a gathering place across millennia. The new ring at Machrie Moor has not yet been excavated, and the evidence for prehistoric violence remains open to interpretation. But the direction of travel is clear. Early Scotland looks less like an empty northern fringe and more like a dense world of ritual landscapes, armed communities and social memory stretching back 5,000 years. The stones were never mute. We are only getting better at hearing what kind of world they belonged to.Keep up with Daily Euro Times for more updates! Read also: The Outlander Effect: How the Show Put Scotland on the Map Rural Europe Pushes Back Against Megafarms Homer in a Mummy Rewrites Cultural Borders
Read more
WORLD

Sahel Grows Increasingly Hostile Towards Foreign Powers

Rebel fighters push deeper into northern Mali as Sahel rulers sever old alliances and gamble on defending their territory alone.
Read more
WORLD

Europe vs. America: The World Cup’s Hidden Culture War

A racist jibe, a disputed red card and a peace prize have turned the 2026 World Cup into an unlikely stage for transatlantic tension.
Read more

Share

The Economic Community of West African States, commonly known as ECOWAS, faces a major political shift as Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger officially announced their exit from the regional group. This unusual move comes from rising tensions between all three countries and ECOWAS on leadership issues and the bloc’s stance on military-led governments.

The Joint Exit: Background and Statement

Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger announced their withdrawal from ECOWAS on 28 January 2024, citing discontent with the bloc’s rules. The three military governments that run these countries after coups in recent years criticised ECOWAS for actions, labelled as unfair, and out of touch with their national struggles. The bloc’s use of sanctions and its leaning toward Western interests have drawn sharp pushback. Each government formally stated that ECOWAS’ handling of leadership and democracy ignored the security and political troubles in each nation state. 

ECOWAS, set up in 1975, serves as a regional economic and political bloc aiming to boost unity and steadiness. Recent years continue to test the bloc’s strength as military takeovers and leadership crises spread across parts of West Africa. Clashes have been especially sharp since ECOWAS took a strict stance against unlawful changes in government.

Security Troubles: A Shared Reason

Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger are struggling with deep security woes, with Islamist uprisings shaking the Sahel region. Armed groups tied to organisations like al-Qai’da and Daesh have struck civilians and government sites, leading to thousands of deaths and people fleeing their homes. According to United Nations reports, over two million people are displaced across the Sahel, with Burkina Faso seeing the highest number.

The governments of these three countries argue that ECOWAS’ sanctions and demands for quick switches to civilian rule weaken their ability to tackle these urgent threats. In their joint statement, the military-led administrations claimed that the bloc’s policies risked regional steadiness by failing to deal with the full depth of their problems.

Regional Ties and a New Aim

The decision to leave ECOWAS also shows the growing ties between Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger. The three countries have strengthened ties under a newly formed security group, termed the ‘Alliance of Sahel States.’ This union seeks to work together on military efforts against uprisings and to push back against what the three leaders call ‘outside meddling.’

Assimi Goïta’s military regime is actively challenging old regional ties in Mali, including its earlier exit from the G5 Sahel. Niger and Burkina Faso have followed suit, forming a new bloc that focuses on military answers and shuns Western sway. This shift shows frustration with groups like ECOWAS, seen as putting leadership models above urgent security needs.

Economic and Political Outcomes

The withdrawal of these countries from ECOWAS has deep economic and political implications for West Africa. ECOWAS has long played a key role in pushing trade and regional economic ties. The exit shakes the bloc’s strength, raising doubts about the future of teamwork across borders in the area.

Why Three Military-led States left ECOWAS? Daily Euro Times

ECOWAS imposed sanctions on Mali and Niger, including border closures and limits on money dealings, which caused major setbacks. Mali, for instance, has seen a drop in access to global financial markets. The three countries have blamed ECOWAS for making their economic troubles worse rather than helping to solve them.

The withdrawal also hints at a possible break-up of West African politics. Analysts worry that this shared move might set a precedent, potentially inspiring other members with leadership troubles to question ECOWAS’ authority.

ECOWAS Reply and World Reactions

ECOWAS has shown regret over the decision, restating its stand for democratic values and regional steadiness. The bloc has faced blame for how it handled military-led governments, with some experts urging more flexible ways of dealing. The Chairperson of the ECOWAS Commission, Omar Touray, said that the departures weaken shared efforts to tackle joint problems, especially insecurity.

World bodies, including the United Nations and the African Union, have stressed the dangers of weaker teamwork in the Sahel. The African Union Peace and Security Council underscored the need to keep group systems strong to face cross-border threats.

A Pivotal Moment for West Africa

The withdrawal of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger from ECOWAS marks a key moment in West African regional ties. The move shows deep splits over leadership and security goals. As these countries push a new aim through other alliances, the wider region must tackle the challenge of balancing different paths to steadiness and growth.

Your Mirror to Europe and the Middle East.

We don’t spam! Read more in our privacy policy

Previous article
France and Morocco: Diplomatic Ties Warm Again
Next article
European Crackdown on Russian Shadow Fleet
EUROPE

Is Farage Heading for the Dustbin?

Nigel Farage quit Parliament to fight a rubbish-bin mascot for his own seat, wagering that grievance beats scrutiny in the court of public opinion.
EUROPE

Attal Uses Clavicular to Redefine His Political Brand

When a presidential candidate attacks an American streamer for mocking France, the influencer arena stops being parallel to politics and starts becoming part of it.