Guinea-Bissau President Threatens to Expel ECOWAS Mission, Bloc Says
Guinea-Bissau's President Umaro Sissoco Embalo threatened to expel a political mission sent to his country by the Economic Community of West Africa States (ECOWAS) in response to a dispute over his presidential term. The dispute has heightened tensions that risk unrest in a nation with a history of military coups, which have undermined its democratic institutions. ECOWAS had deployed a mission from February 21 to 28 to help reach a consensus on how to conduct an election this year.
- This expulsion threat by Embalo could be seen as a desperate attempt to buy time and avoid confronting the opposition's demands for his term to end, potentially prolonging instability in Guinea-Bissau.
- What implications would a prolonged absence of ECOWAS' mediation have on the already fragile state of Guinea-Bissau's democracy and its relations with other West African countries?