The careful word choice keeps in play an estimated $200 million of humanitarian and economic support to the country, largely food assistance for a country of 25 million people where at least 40 percent are estimated to be living on less than $2 per day.
And while the U.S. has suspended military cooperation with Nigerien forces, the administration has not signaled it's evacuating an estimated 1,100 U.S. troops, who are engaged in counterterrorism, surveillance and intelligence gathering with Nigerien forces.
"The U.S., I think, is doing everything right for now — not calling it a coup right away — to maintain channels of communications, to maintain its support to Niger if the situation were to come back to normal," said Kamissa Camara, a senior adviser for Africa at the U.S. Institute of Peace.
Pentagon spokesman Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder said Tuesday that the fluid situation in Niger means it's "just too soon to characterize" the unrest as a coup.
"We're not going to get into labels," Ryder said. "We are going to continue to be focused on using diplomatic tools to try to preserve Niger's hard-earned democracy."
Niger President Mohamed Bazoum on July 26 was arrested by military leaders supporting Gen. Abdourahmane Tchiani. Bazoum was detained by his own presidential guard.
The coup prompted France, Spain, Italy and Germany to begin evacuating their citizens and other Europeans as Niger's military has imposed border closures.
Washington is still considering a final decision on whether to remove some embassy staff and their families from the country, but the situation looks likely, according to multiple reports.
The U.S. personnel would reportedly be moved by aircraft chartered by the State Department.
Read the full report at TheHill.com.
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