The French Foreign Ministry has banned the publication of a book by its former ambassador to Niger, Sylvain Eté, under several pretexts, including invoking the country’s law on the protection of national defense secrets.
In writing “At the Heart of French Diplomacy in Africa”, Ambassador Etty reflected his diplomatic experience in Niamey, and the publication ban coincided with the consequences of the diplomatic and military crisis that flared up in recent months between Paris and Niamey and ended with the departure of French troops from the country.
French media quoted official sources as saying that the decision to ban the publication came in a letter sent by the Foreign Ministry in mid-January to Sylvain Eté.
The publishing house reported that this proposed work “appears to involve more risks than benefits”, especially since it will reveal “a lot of information about the French crisis management system” and “(the ambassador’s) correspondence with the authorities in his country and also with Nigerien actors”.
A spokesman for the house, Lesidzio di Roche, said: “We will postpone the release, we don’t really know what happened. Everything was planned and we were almost done.” The publishing house has not received an official explanation, but its spokesman “imagines that there are paragraphs that did not make the ministry very happy.”
The newspaper Le Canard Inchine reported that it did not seem possible to authorize its publication.
Former ambassador Etéty, who served as ambassador in Niamey from 2019 to 2022, recounts in this book, which is banned from publication, the secrets of French diplomacy in Africa, especially in the Sahel region, where France has been militarily engaged since 2013 in Operation Barkhane.
Sensitive information and destabilization of Niger
In this case, the ambassador could have revealed sensitive information about the French crisis management system in Niger, in particular a project to destabilize the Nigerien regime through Tuareg rebel leader Rassa Ag Bola.
The French Foreign Ministry expressed its fear that the publication of this sensitive information would endanger the security of France and France’s partners in Niger.
According to sources close to the publishing house, one passage in the book specifically mentions French support for Risa Ag Bola as part of a planned armed rebellion against the Nigerian army.
This scheme was due to the slow intervention of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to restore President Mohamed Bazoum, who was ousted by the July 2023 coup.
Source: RT
