Niger Coup Leaders Refuse to Let Senior US Diplomat Meet with Nation’s President

A senior US diplomat said coup leaders in Niger refused to allow her to meet Monday with the West African country’s democratically elected president, whom she described as under “virtual house arrest.”

Acting Deputy Secretary of State Victoria Nuland also described the mutinous officers as unreceptive to US pressure to return the country to civilian rule, AP reported.

“They were quite firm about how they want to proceed, and it is not in support of the constitution of Niger,” Nuland told reporters. She characterized the conversations as “extremely frank and at times quite difficult.”