Gambia hosts Guinea-Bissau junta leader days after election delay

Gambia hosts Guinea-Bissau junta leader days after election delay

The man leading Guinea-Bissau's post-coup government is in The Gambia seeking closer security ties, just days after his administration announced that the country will not hold elections as scheduled to return to civilian rule. General Tomás Djassi, army chief and head of Guinea-Bissau's National Transition Council since the November 2025 military takeover, arrived in Banjul on Monday for a four-day official visit. His arrival comes less than a week after Guinea-Bissau's prime minister and electoral commission said conditions were not in place to hold the December 6th polls, a vote that was meant to end military rule and restore constitutional order.

During his stay, Djassi is scheduled to hold closed-door meetings with Chief of Defence Staff, Defence Minister Sering Modou Njie, Inspector General of Police Seedy Mukhtar Touray and National Security Adviser Abubakarr Jeng. The visit will conclude with the signing of a joint communiqué outlining priority areas for cooperation, the army said. Analysts see the trip as part of a wider effort by Bissau's military leadership to seek regional legitimacy following the postponement of elections.

The Gambia, which chairs several ECOWAS security initiatives and has itself transitioned from authoritarian rule, is viewed as a key diplomatic interlocutor. The Gambia government has not yet commented publicly on the postponement of Guinea-Bissau's elections. ECOWAS has previously insisted on a short transition and a return to constitutional rule in Guinea-Bissau, warning against prolonged military rule in the sub-region.