The Capitals: Coup in Niger capital Niamey, Baghdad's bid for peace with Kuwait city, and more

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In Niger's capital Niamey, the democratically elected President Mohamed Bazoum was overthrown by his own presidential guards.

President Bazoum was the first elected leader to succeed another in Niger since its independence from the French in 1960. Now his captors have suspended the country's constitution and installed Gen Abdourahmane Tchiani as head of state.

Niger is a key part of the African region known as the Sahel, a land belt that stretches from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea. Niger is the world's seventh-biggest producer of uranium, according to the World Nuclear Association (WNA).

The coup leaders have warned regional and Western powers against military intervention to reinstate the democratically-elected president.

Baghdad, Iraq

Baghdad and Kuwait city over the weekend pledged to work towards resolving issues dating back to Saddam Hussein’s 1990 invasion of the oil-rich country.

The disputes over the maritime border demarcation and joint oilfields top the bilateral agenda for potential resolution.

"We discussed the pending issues between the two sides and we also discussed ways to protect the good relations between the two countries and develop them," Iraqi foreign minster Fuad Hussein said at a joint press conference with Kuwaiti foreign minister Sheikh Salem Abdullah Al Jaber Al Sabah.

Buenos Aires, Argentina

The International Monetary Fund reached a staff-level agreement with Argentina to unlock about $7.5 billion and complete the fifth and sixth reviews of the struggling country's $44 billion loan programme.

The agreement, which still needs IMF Executive Board approval, eases some programme requirements because a devastating drought has created a "very challenging" economic environment in Argentina.

Bangui, Central Africa Region

Central African Republic is voting on a constitutional referendum on Sunday which, if it passes, could remove a presidential term limit and allow President Faustin-Archange Touadera to run for a third term in 2025.

Touadera was first elected in 2016 for a five-year term and won reelection in 2020 for what was supposed to be his final term in office.

The new constitution would allow him to run for a fresh seven-year mandate, and the number of terms he or another candidate could run for president would be unlimited.

Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Beijing's maritime expansion edged to its intended goal in southeast Asia's Cambodia as Phnom Penh announced that work is almost complete on a naval base that the West fears is intended for Chinese military use.

US officials suspect the Ream Naval Base is being redeveloped for use by China, a close ally of Cambodia.

Paris, France

This week, the Olympic clock on July 26 showed that exactly one year from now the world will be in the middle of its 33rd Olympic Games.

During a ceremony held at Paris 2024’s "Pulse" headquarters, International Olympic Committee's President Thomas Bach symbolically presented invitations to the presidents and representatives of the NOCs of Greece, as the birthplace of the Olympic Games, and of the host countries of recent and upcoming Olympic Games and Youth Olympic Games, as well as the IOC’s Refugee Olympic Team.

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