A French government official was detained in the military-run nation of Niger

The French Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday that a French diplomat had been detained in junta-run Niger and demanded that he be released right away.

Military forces in Niger overthrew elected President Mohamed Bazoum in July and last month issued an order for French personnel to leave the country, which France has refused to follow since it believes the junta in Niger is not the legal government of the nation.

Stephane Jullien, a non-diplomatic, elected position of counsellor for French nationals overseas, was detained last Friday, the ministry said on X, the site previously known as Twitter. The government demanded his “immediate release.”

Despite being ordered to leave, French President Emmanuel Macron said that the ambassador will remain in Niger. In a speech to ambassadors in August, Macron allayed fears that defying the junta may be risky.

It was inevitable that the detention of a French diplomat would intensify already-high tensions between France and Niger, its former colony.

The Foreign Ministry made no mention of Jullien’s detention, where it occurred, how it happened, or if anybody in Paris was aware of his whereabouts. It just said that France was actively monitoring the situation and was “fully mobilized” to provide him the safeguards owed to anybody abroad.

France “calls immediately for his release,” the statement said.

The Nigerien Foreign Ministry wrote to the French Ambassador Sylvain Itte on August 25 demanding that he leave the country within 48 hours after accusing him of rejecting an invitation to meet with the ministry. Also mentioned in the letter were “actions of the French government contrary to the interests of Niger.”

France has always exclusively recognized Bazoum’s authority. The junta, which is now subject to sanctions by Western and regional African governments, is still holding him captive.

In order to support local forces against Islamic militants, over 1,500 French soldiers are stationed in Niger. However, since the coup, whose commanders believed Bazoum’s administration wasn’t doing enough to defend the nation from the insurgency, the military’s assistance has been terminated.

At the annual conference of the country’s ambassadors in late August in Paris, Macron stated, “One shouldn’t give in to the narrative used by the coup leaders that consists of saying France has become our enemy.”