Two weeks after the coup d'état that hit the regimeAli Bongo Ondimbaand less than five months after their last meeting, on April 29 in Yaoundé, Paulo Bia AND Faustin-Archange Touadéra (FAT) They met on September 12th, around 7 pm, at the Unity Palace, in Yaoundé.
The Central African president was received by senior presidential officials, including the director of the civil cabinet Samuel Mvondo Ayolo, the prime minister, José Dion Ngute, and the protocol of the head of state, Simon Pierre Bikele. The two heads of state then moved on to the third floor, in the presidential offices, where they spoke for at least two hours.
Gabon suspended
It was as facilitator of the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC) in Gabon that Faustin-Archange Touadéra was on the 5th and 6th of September in Libreville, where he met with General Brice Clotário Oligui Nguema and Ali Bongo Ondimba. The regional organization – now won by Equatorial Guinea Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo and whose headquarters were temporarily located in Malabo – suspended Gabon from its authorities.
This interview with Paul Biya was, therefore, an opportunity to talk, among other things, about the progress of the discussions. In the aftermath of the coup, the Cameroonian government, through its Minister of Communications, René Emmanuel Sadi,called for the “rapid return of constitutional order” and the “preservation of peace and stability”, as well as the “physical integrity” of the deposed president of Gabon. Paul Biya reiterated his desire for the return of peace to Gabon. à-tête, the Cameroonian president approved the resolutions of the recent meetings of the Conference of Heads of State and Government of the ECCAS, which he presided over for four years.
Subregional security
The two heads of state also discussed in cooperation between their two countries, in security and economic matters. In fact, for the Central African Republic, a landlocked country, the port of Douala constitutes a maritime outlet. Cameroon has also provided support to the peace process in the Central African Republic and for several years sent contingents as part of the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA).
The country also welcomed several thousand Central African refugees in the Eastern and Adamaoua regions, the scene of military uprisings by rebels from the Central African Republic. On the sidelines of this meeting, Faustin-Archange Touadéra also spoke behind closed doors with the Prime Minister, Joseph Dion Ngute.
To strengthen the security system, Paul Biya signed a decree on September 4 creating a Peacekeeping Operations Training School (EFOMP). The objective of this military institution, created on the Central African border and directly linked to the Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces, is to contribute to the training of Cameroonian soldiers in the field of peacekeeping operations in the sub-region and beyond.
On a personal level, FAT maintains close ties with Cameroon. In fact, he regularly gets private he has Yaoundé.
