West African leaders depart

Accra, Nov. 12, GNA - Six West African Heads of States, who arrived in Accra to hold discussions with President John Agyekum Kufuor this evening left Accra for their respective countries, without the usual pre-departure press briefing at the Airport.

The Accra meeting, which was called by the ECOWAS Chairman President Kufuor was to find ways of moving the Marcoussis and Accra Peace Accords on La Cote d'Ivoire forward.

The six Leaders are: President Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria; President Blaise Compaore of Burkina Faso; President Mamadou Tandja of Niger; President Gnasssingbe Eyadema of Togo; President Matthew Kerekou of Benin; and President Laurent Gbagbo of Cote d'Ivoire At the airport to see them off were President Kufuor, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Minister of Foreign Affairs and other government officials.

Journalists covering the ECOWAS Summit had seen President Obasanjo leaving the meeting apparently because of the intransigence of the Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo.

Soon after President Obasanjo left all the other Heads of State followed and they left the scene of the Summit without the usual protocol of meeting the media to brief them on the outcome of their meeting.


The Summit was meant to address concerns of the Ivorian New Force (Rebels) in connection with the implementation of the Accords.


They discussed the concerns of New Force with respect to the selection of Ministers for the National Security and Defence portfolios. Also on the agenda was the security for members of the New Force that are serving in the government of Prime Minister Seydou Diarra, who was also at the meeting.

Members of the New Force had withdrawn from the Government following disagreement over the selection of the two Ministers and fears about the Security of their Ministers.


The meeting was also expected to thrash out the mistrust between the President Gbagbo and President Compaore .The Ivorian President has accused the Burkina Faso President of supporting the New Force.