THE military leaders of Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso slammed Western colonial powers on Saturday as they ruled out returning to west Africa’s regional economic bloc.

The leaders made the joint announcement during their first summit in Niger’s capital Niamey, after their withdrawal from the west African bloc Ecowas in January.

It comes despite Ecowas lifting harsh coup-related economic and trade sanctions that the three nations have blamed for their original decision to quit the bloc last year.

The three allies accused the regional bloc of failing its mandate and pledged to consolidate their own union – the Alliance of Sahel States – which was created last year.

Niger’s military leader, General Abdourahmane Tchiani, complained on Saturday that the nearly 50-year-old Ecowas has become “a threat to our states.”

He said: “We are going to create an AES of the peoples, instead of an Ecowas whose directives and instructions are dictated to it by powers that are foreign to Africa.”

The meeting of the three countries that border one another came a day before an Ecowas summit being held in Nigeria by other heads of state in the region.

Analysts said the two meetings show a deep division in Ecowas, which had emerged as the top political authority for its 15 member states before the three countries’ unprecedented decision to withdraw.

Formed last September, the Alliance of Sahel States has been touted by its members as a tool to seek new partnerships with countries like Russia and cement independence from former colonial ruler France, which they accuse of interfering with Ecowas.

In in a sign of discontent with the role of the former colonial ruler, Niger last month revoked the operating licence of French nuclear fuel producer Orano at a uranium mine in the country, one of the biggest in the world.

Burkina Faso leader Captain Ibrahim Traore accused foreign countries of exploiting Africa.

“Westerners consider that we belong to them and our wealth also belongs to them. They think that they are the ones who must continue to tell us what is good for our states. This era is gone forever; our resources will remain for us and our populations,” Captain Traore said.

Mali’s leader Colonel Assimi Goita said: “The attack on one of us will be an attack on all the other members.”

The three leaders signed a pact in committing their countries to creating a regional parliament and a bank similar to those operated by Ecowas.