Niger and Benin locked in trade dispute over oil export blockade: summary
What we know
- Niger's Prime Minister, Ali Mahaman Lamine Zeine, has condemned Benin's recent blockade on Niger's oil exports.
- The blockade, initiated in response to a border closure, has sparked tensions, with Zeine asserting that it violates established trade agreements between the two nations and with Niger's Chinese partners.
- The blockade poses a significant threat to Niger's ambitions of kickstarting crude exports under a $400 million deal with the state-owned oil giant, China National Petroleum Corp.
- Niger's reliance on this deal is crucial, as the revenue was earmarked to offset bond payments missed during a period of regional sanctions.
- The relationship between Niger and Benin has been fraught since a coup shook Niger in July 2023, leading to the imposition of sanctions by the Economic Community of West African States.
What they said
Prime Minister Zeine, speaking from the capital Niamey rejected Benin's demand for the full reopening of the border. He cited security concerns as the primary deterrent, alleging that Benin's territory hosts bases where terrorists are trained to destabilise Niger. Despite lacking specific details on these claims, Zeine emphasised that the border would remain closed until Niger's security is assured. "In Benin's territory, there are bases where in some, terrorists are trained to come and destabilise our country. So, it is for simple security reasons that we decided to maintain the border closure," Zeine said, adding, "We'll reopen the border when we are certain that our territory is secured."
