Russia Hopes For Quick Normalization Of Situation In Burkina Faso - Kremlin

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd October, 2022) Moscow would like the situation in Burkina Faso to normalize as quickly as possible, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on Monday.

On Friday night, media in Burkina Faso reported that Lt. Col. Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, the leader of an interim government who himself came to power through a coup in January, was ousted by a group of military officers led by Capt. Ibrahim Traore in what is already the second military takeover in the country in eight months.

Traore's group has since suspended the constitution and closed the borders.

"We would like the situation in Burkina Faso to normalize as quickly as possible, to ensure complete order in the country, and to return to the framework of legitimacy as quickly as possible," Peskov told reporters.

Earlier in the day, the Russian Foreign Ministry stated that the situation in Burkina Faso after the military takeover is calming down, adding that there are no casualties among Russian citizens.

"According to the information of the Russian Embassy in Abidjan representing our interests in Burkina Faso, the situation in this African state is under control of the new authorities and tends to calm down.

There are no casualties among Russian citizens staying on the territory of Burkina Faso," the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry also called on all parties to the unrest to exercise restraint in order to preserve internal security and socio-economic stability, and expressed the hope that the new leadership would return to constitutional order as soon as possible.

Earlier on Sunday, Burkina Faso's religious and community leaders mediating the political crisis said that the toppled leader, Damiba, was ready to tender his resignation as long as the military group that overthrew him accepted several conditions, including a guarantee of his security and the security of his allies, respect for the previous commitments he made to the Economic Community of West African States, and an ongoing state reform.

The new military leader has reportedly accepted these terms.