China rejects coup in Guinea The spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry called for the release of President Alpha Condé. China on Monday announced its rejection of the military coup in Guinea and called on all parties to engage in dialogue and release detained President Alpha Condé. Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said at a press conference in the capital, Beijing, according to China's “Global Times” newspaper. “China rejects any coup attempt to seize power and calls for the immediate release of President Condé. We call on all parties to exercise restraint, respect the country's fundamental interests and resolve issues through dialogue and consultation, ”Wenbin said. On Sunday, the special forces of the Guinean army announced, through a video footage posted on social networks, the arrest of President Condé, the dissolution of the government and the suspension of the Constitution, before uploading another video of the President arrested. The Defense Ministry said in a statement that the rebels sowed terror in the capital Conakry, before seizing the presidential palace, but the presidential guard, supported by the defense and security forces, and loyal and republican forces, contained the threat and repelled the group of aggressors. As uncertainty reigns over the development of the situation in Conakry, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “strongly” condemned “any seizure of power by force of arms” in Guinea. +++++++++++++++++++++++ Guinea: Moscow and Beijing demand the release of President Alpha Condé The Russian Foreign Ministry has announced its rejection of attempts to seize power by force in Guinea following yesterday's military coup in the country. Russian diplomacy said in a statement Monday that it was following developments in Guinea with deep concern, stressing that it rejects any unconstitutional attempt to change power. She also called for the release of the country's President, Alpha Condé, and the need to ensure his protection. “We believe in the need for a rapid return to constitutional order in Guinea,” reads the official communication from Russian diplomacy. Moscow also called on all political forces in Guinea to avoid actions that would incite violence, and to find a peaceful solution to the current situation. The Russian ministry also noted the cancellation of the official visit of Guinean Foreign Minister Ibrahim Khalil Kaba, who was due to visit Moscow. “China rejects any coup attempt to seize power and calls for the immediate release of President Condé. We call on all parties to exercise restraint, respect the country's fundamental interests and resolve issues through dialogue and consultation, ”Wenbin said. GUINEETIME.COM Coup d'etat in Guinea: France condemns and calls for the release of President Condé Images posted on social media show President Alpha Condé retained among the coup leaders, but the Defense Ministry assures us that the attack has been repelled. In Guinea, members of the special forces carried out a coup on Sunday and arrested the president, Alpha Condé, 83 years old. Despite the gunshots heard, no deaths were reported. The apparent epilogue of more than ten years of the Condé regime has given rise to scenes of jubilation in various districts of the capital Conakry. “We have decided to dissolve the constitution " “We decided, after seeing the president who is with us, to dissolve the current constitution, dissolve the government, and close the land and air borders,” the coup leaders quickly declared in a video posted on social networks. They also announced that a curfew would be in place in the evening. "Inclusive and peaceful transition" They are led by Lt. Col. Mamady Doumbouya, head of special forces, who spoke in the video. Denouncing the "mismanagement", Lieutenant-Colonel Doumbouya, draped in a Guinean flag, then reiterated this statement on national television, which had interrupted the usual programs. He also promised "to initiate a national consultation to open an inclusive and peaceful transition". The putschists also released a video of President Condé in their hands. They ask him if he has been mistreated, and Alpha Condé, in jeans and a crumpled shirt on a sofa, refuses to answer them. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has "strongly" condemned "any seizure of power [...] by force of guns" and called for "the immediate release of President Alpha Condé". Same story in Paris, where the Quai d´Orsay demanded "the immediate and unconditional release of President (Alpha) Condé". The African Union and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) have made the same demand. Legitimate authorities no longer respond The Defense Ministry initially claimed that the presidential guard pushed back the "insurgents" when they attempted to take over the presidential palace. But the authorities in place until then fell silent. "We hold all of Conakry and we are with all the defense and security forces to finally put an end to the Guinean evil," Lieutenant-Colonel Doumbouya, a very little known figure until then, told France 24 television. "Excited soldiers were firing in the air ..." "I saw a column of military vehicles aboard which excited soldiers fired in the air and chanted military slogans," said a resident of the Tombo district, near the center of the capital, after the start of the putsch , in the morning. They were heading for the Kaloum peninsula, the nerve center of Conakry, where the presidency, institutions and business offices of this West African country have been plagued for months by a serious economic crisis and sit. Politics. Alpha Condé's Too Many Mandate Alpha Condé's candidacy for a third term in 2020 has sparked months of tension that has left dozens of deaths in a country customary to bloody political confrontation. The election was preceded and followed by the arrest of dozens of opponents. The third term began in December 2020, in this tense context. Human rights defenders criticize an authoritarian drift observed under his presidency over the years and questioning the gains from the beginning. Alpha Condé, historical opponent, was indeed the first democratically elected president of his country in 2010. Doumbouya in the hot seat in spring The present situation could have been caused by an attempt to sideline the commander of the special forces, Lieutenant-Colonel Mamady Doumbouya, against a backdrop of jealousy within the armed forces towards this unit, which benefits from greater means than the other security forces. , explained a Western diplomat speaking on condition of anonymity. Conakry News with AFP
