Bazoum's election was the first democratic transition of power in a state that has witnessed four military coups since gaining independence from France in 1960.
LUDOVIC MARIN/POOL/PAP/EPA

The Polish Foreign Ministry expressed support for Niger’s president, Mohamed Bazoum, after military leaders claimed to have removed him from power.

On Wednesday evening, a group of Niger army officers, introducing themselves as members of the “National Council for Saving the Homeland” appeared on the West African nation’s national television and stated that Bazoum had been removed from power.

Niger’s borders have been closed, a nationwide curfew declared, and all institutions of the republic have been suspended.

The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on social media on Thursday that “Poland supports the democratically-elected president Mohamed Bazoum,” and also appeals for “calm and talks to normalise the situation in Niger.”

According to Reuters news agency, President Bazoum is being held at his residence in the capital Niamey by members of his presidential guard.

The “unshakable support of the United States for him and democracy in Niger,” has also been declared earlier by Antony Blinken, the US secretary of state, during a phone call with Bazoum.

Bazoum’s election was the first democratic transition of power in a state that has witnessed four military coups since gaining independence from France in 1960.

His rule has protected the country from the fallout of the Islamic insurgency that has so far left thousands dead and more than six million homeless across the Sahel region.