News in Brief
Russia bans entry to Moldovan officials
REUTERS – Russia banned entry to several Moldovan officials following Moldova’s “unfriendly” decision to expel 22 Russian diplomats, the Russian Foreign Ministry said on Friday, marking a further worsening of already strained bilateral ties.
Twenty-two Russian diplomats flew out of the Moldovan capital Chisinau on Aug. 14, leaving behind a skeleton staff.
“... this unfriendly step leads to the further destruction of Russian-Moldovan relations, which are already in a deep crisis due to the actions of the Moldovan side,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement after summoning Chisinau’s ambassador to Moscow to express its disapproval.
W African militaries meet on Niger crisis
REUTERS – West African army chiefs held a second and final day of talks on Friday in Ghana’s capital Accra, where they have been hashing out the details of a possible military intervention in Niger if diplomacy fails to reverse a military coup.
Military officers deposed Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26 and have defied calls from the United Nations, the West African bloc ECOWAS and others to reinstate him, prompting regional powers to order a standby force to be assembled.