West African regional bloc ECOWAS has had a difficult year.
In January, Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger announced their withdrawal from the bloc effective as of January 2025 - and established an alternative regional organisation, known as the Alliance of Sahel States AES.
Military governments in the AES claimed that they had been badly treated by ECOWAS, which had imposed sanctions after they removed civilian governments in coups.
They also argued that the regional bloc had failed to help them fight raging jihadist insurgencies and complained that ECOWAS was working too closely with France and other Western powers.
Meanwhile, AES states have become increasingly close with Russia, creating a regional divide. Countries including Nigeria and Benin, who retain stronger links to the West, are finding relations increasingly troublesome.
