After Gabon’s August 30, 2023, coup, the United States withdrew its assistance on Monday, October 23, 2023, but it declared that it would be willing to continue assisting the country as long as significant democratic progress is made.
After the military takeover, the US announced that it had officially concluded that a coup had occurred, necessitating the suspension of non-humanitarian aid in accordance with US law.
State Department spokesman Matthew Miller issued a statement saying, “We will resume our assistance alongside concrete actions by the transitional government toward establishing democratic rule.”
“The United States stands with the Gabonese people in their aspirations for democracy, prosperity, and stability.”
In contrast to Niger, another African nation where the US withdrew help due to a coup, Gabon, which is rich in oil and has been ruled by the Bongo family for more than 50 years, has received very little support from the US.
Ali Bongo Ondimba was overthrown by military officers in Gabon shortly after he was declared the victor of an election that was heavily condemned for irregularities.
The military appointed opposition leader Raymond Ndong Sima as prime minister.
Ndong Sima has begged Western nations to refrain from generalizing about all military takeovers, claiming that the intervention avoided instability and handled corruption-related issues.
