Following a failed coup attempt, Nigerien junta leader Abdourahman Tchiani will likely strengthen cooperation with Russia and Algeria, given both countries' rapid support for his regime, but expected military purges will likely undermine Niger's counter-insurgency operations and bolster jihadist momentum in the country. On the night of Aug. 28-29, putschists and forces loyal to Tchiani clashed near the presidential palace in Niamey. After being repelled by Tchiani's Presidential Guard, the mutineers retreated toward Niamey's Diori Hamani International Airport, where they seized Airbase 101. As loyalist forces secured key transport nodes in the capital and repelled an assault on the national television headquarters, the junta formally requested the assistance of Russia's paramilitary Africa Corps. The Presidential Guard and Africa Corps then stormed Airbase 101 in the afternoon of Aug. 29, reportedly resulting in intense but brief clashes before the mutineers surrendered.