Guinean authorities have called for the Liberian flag to be returned to its original position on the Kiéssènèye border in northern Guinea, following an incident in the area straddling Guéckédou (Guinea) and Foya (Liberia).
On Sunday, a meeting was held in Guéckédou between a Guinean delegation led by Minister of Territorial Administration and Decentralization Ibrahima Kalil Condé and a Liberian mission headed by Minister of Internal Affairs Niuma Ley.
The tensions stem from a sand extraction operation carried out in the Makona River in late February and early March, in a disputed border area.
According to local officials, a Liberian company contracted for road works in Foya had begun extracting sand for an infrastructure project, prompting Guinean authorities to seize equipment operating on the site without authorisation.
The talks aimed to clarify the circumstances surrounding the incident and reach a mutually acceptable agreement to prevent further escalation. The situation grew more complicated, however, when the Liberian flag — initially positioned approximately 800 meters from the Makona River — was moved closer to the bank.
Guinean Minister Ibrahima Kalil Condé condemned the move as an illegal encroachment and invoked the principle of the intangibility of borders inherited from the colonial period. He added that Guinean President Mamadi Doumbouya favours dialogue and consultation as the preferred means of preserving social cohesion between communities on both sides of the border.
For his part, Liberian Minister Niuma Ley welcomed the spirit of cooperation between the two countries and confirmed that the flag would be returned to its original position. He also proposed holding periodic meetings between interior ministers across the subregion to help prevent similar incidents in the future.
The meeting concluded on a conciliatory note, with both sides reaffirming their commitment to dialogue and peaceful relations between border communities.
RNK/te/lb/as/APA