On Monday evening, Niger Prime Minister Ouhoumoudou Mahamadou told French TV5-Monde that he wants ECOWAS representatives to return to the country for new talks shortly.

Two mediation attempts between ECOWAS and the coup plotters in Niger have so far resulted in zero. The cooperation organization has imposed sanctions on the country and its military chiefs of staff have said that they do not rule out military intervention.

With this, the military junta has closed the airspace over the country with a promise to respond harshly if the measure is challenged. There are no signs yet that military action is underway and ECOWAS, which wants deposed President Mohamed Bazoum to regain power, has said it prefers a peaceful solution.

Meanwhile, Burkina Faso and Mali have backed the coup plotters. An attack on them will be considered an attack on the two countries themselves, according to them.

"The more time passes, the greater the impact of sanctions. It will be difficult for the state to go around and it is something that is already being felt in people's lives, with food prices and access to electricity. That is the point of the sanctions, you should put pressure on the junta to make them lose parts of the popular support, says Gabriella Körling, researcher at the Swedish Defense Research Institute.

Hear Gabriella Körling about the coup in Niger in the clip above.

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For the fifth time, there is a change of power in Niger, just two years after the president was elected. Photo: Reuters