Gabon Coup : International Community Condemns

The international community has condemned the military takeover in the Republic of Gabon. On Wednesday, August 30, 2023 just hours after the proclamation of the August 26 presidential election results that saw the victory of incumbent President Ali Bongo, the military staged a coup and cancelled the results. Since the announcement of the coup by the military junta, there has been incessant condemnation from some countries and institutions with the head of the African Union Commission, Moussa Faki Mahamat, calling on security forces to peacefully return to democratic constitutional order. “I call on the national army and the security forces … to guarantee the personal safety of the president, the members of his family and those of his government,” a spokesperson for Mahamat said. 
The spokesperson for Nigeria’s president said, “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, is watching developments in Gabon very closely with deep concern for the country’s socio-political stability and the seeming autocratic contagion apparently spreading across different regions of our beloved continent.” France a former colonial master of Gabon that maintained close economic, diplomatic and military ties with the country and has over 400 soldiers stationed in the country says, “It is closely monitoring developments in the country.” The United States said, “…We are going to watch this closely, and we’re going to continue to do everything we can to support the idea of democratic ideals that are expressed by the African people,” said White House national security spokesman John Kirby. 
China’s Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, “China is closely following the development of the situation in Gabon and calls on relevant parties in Gabon to … restore normal order as soon as possible. And also ensure the personal safety of President Bongo, maintain national peace, ...