Mali, France spat takes another turn

MALI’S junta said France no longer has a “legal basis” for carrying out military operations in the country after Bamako quit key defence accords, in the latest round of a spat between the two former allies.

The announcement late on Tuesday came a day after the junta walked out of several agreements underpinning French and European missions in the jihadist-hit state.

Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop declared that it would take six months for the formal end of a 2014 defence co-operation agreement with France to take effect. However, the legal end of agreements signed in 2013 and 2020 on France’s Barkhane and Europe’s Takuba operations in Mali applied immediately, he said.

“So, as of May 2, the agreement covering Barkhane and the agreement covering Takuba cease taking an effect with regard to Mali ... which means that as of this moment, there is no legal basis for France to operate on Malian soil,” Diop said.

France deployed thousands of troops in Mali, backed by drones and warplanes, under its Barkhane operation – a mission aimed at helping fragile allies in the Sahel fight a brutal jihadist insurgency.

But the once-close relationship between Paris and Bamako soured after disgruntled officers seized power in August 2020, toppling Mali’s elected president, Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. Tension rose dramatically after the junta brought in paramilitaries France and others say are mercenaries.