President John Dramani Mahama has lifted the curtain on his behind-the-scenes diplomatic push to rebuild trust between ECOWAS and the Alliance of Sahel States, disclosing how he inherited a tense atmosphere when he assumed office and had to convince the regional bloc to soften its hardline posture.

Speaking at Chatham House in London on Monday, June 1, 2026, at an event themed “Navigating a Changing Global Order: Ghana’s Strategic Priorities,” President Mahama described the state of affairs he met upon returning to the presidency as one of open hostility.

“When I came to the presidency, I met an atmosphere of distrust. These states had just broken off from ECOWAS and declared themselves a confederation. ECOWAS was not talking to each other. Indeed, the atmosphere was adversarial; it was like everybody wanted their pound of flesh,” he said.

President Mahama shared that his first task was persuading ECOWAS to change course.

“The first thing to do was to convince ECOWAS that it was not the way to go and that we should reach out to them,” he said.

The next step, he said, was inviting the leaders of the AES to his inauguration, which they “graciously attended.”

Burkina Faso’s military leader, Ibrahim Traoré, attended President Mahama’s inauguration in person, while Mali and Niger sent their prime ministers.

In line with African tradition, President Mahama later paid return visits to all three countries to express gratitude, visits that gave him the opportunity to begin quiet diplomatic engagements.

“I visited all three countries, and it gave me the opportunity to begin to sound out how we can create a more collaborative approach with them,” he said.

The personal diplomacy appears to have yielded results.

“Happily, the atmosphere has thawed, and I think there is more discussion about our common future between ECOWAS and the AES states,” President Mahama told the Chatham House audience.

President Mahama has consistently maintained that the three countries, though they have broken away to form the AES, should not be isolated, arguing that West Africa’s geographical, historical, and cultural ties make continued engagement unavoidable.

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