NIAMEY (Reuters) -The junta that seized energy in Niger in a July 26 coup stated late on Sunday that ousted President Mohamed Bazoum may very well be prosecuted for prime treason.

The coup leaders have imprisoned Bazoum and dissolved the elected authorities, drawing condemnation from West African powers, which have activated a standby navy drive that might intervene to reinstate Bazoum.

Colonel Amadou Abdramane, a spokesperson for the junta, stated on state TV that it had “assembled the mandatory components to prosecute the ousted president … for prime treason and undermining the inner and exterior safety of Niger.”

West Africa’s most important regional bloc ECOWAS is anticipated on Monday to push for extra talks with the junta, which has signalled a possible willingness to discover a diplomatic decision to the standoff over the coup.

The bloc’s parliament on Saturday stated it needed to ship a committee to satisfy the junta in Niamey. The proposed timing for this mission was not instantly clear.

The Peace and Safety Council of the 55-nation African Union can be anticipated to satisfy on Monday to debate the state of affairs in Niger, an indication of the extent of concern over the attainable fallout from West and Central Africa’s seventh coup in three years.

At stake is not only the destiny of Niger – a significant uranium producer and Western ally within the struggle towards an Islamist insurgency – but in addition the affect of rival world powers with strategic pursuits within the area.