What you need to know about the crisis in Mali
MOUNTING tensions between Mali’s military-led government and France led to the expulsion of the French ambassador after his “hostile and outrageous” comments regarding Mali’s transitional government.
The comments by French Foreign Minister Jean-yves Le Drian came amid escalating tensions between Bamako and its European allies following two coups in the last 17 months.
During a media briefing last week, Le Drian told reporters “things cannot stay the way they are” between Mali’s military leaders and the French government and that the Malian government was “out of control”.
According to Al Jazeera, he further stated in the Journal du Dimanche newspaper that the Wagner group – which is a Russian paramilitary organisation – is making off with resources from Mali in exchange for assisting and protecting the military-led government.
In response, Mali Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop urged Paris to be less aggressive and that engagement should not be done through the media.
However, last Monday, Mali expelled the French envoy and gave him 72 hours notice to leave the country.
“The Malian government vigorously condemns and rejects these remarks, which are contrary to the development of friendly relations between nations,” officials said in a statement read over state television.
“The government of the Republic of Mali informs the national and international public that today … the ambassador of France in Bamako, his excellency Joel Meyer … was notified of the decision of the government asking him to leave the national territory within 72 hours.”
In 2013, former French president Francois Hollande initially declared its military offensive to protect and prevent Mafia-like groups interested in exploiting the resources of various regions in Mali.
Further, forward to the August 2020 coup when rebel soldiers led by Colonel Assimi Goita had overthrown Mali’s elected President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita, who at the time, was facing violent protests.
Keita had the support of French President Emmanuel Macron which meant the coup came as a blow to the relationship between the two nations.
Nearly nine months later, Goita was named as the interim president after he had pushed out a civilian-led government in what became the second coup.
On May 25, interim President Bah Ndaw and Prime Minister Moctar Ouane, who were appointed to oversee a transition period, were detained following a dispute in a cabinet reshuffle.
In response to all the uncertainty and power struggle, the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) as well as the AU suspended
Mali from their organisations and threatened sanctions.
At the same time, France suspended its joint military operations with Malian forces due to the coup, with officials calling for guarantees that civilians would return to their leadership positions.
“Demands and red lines have been set by Ecowas and the African Union to clarify the framework for the political transition in Mali,” said France’s armed forces ministry in a statement.
“It is up to the Malian authorities to respond quickly,” it said.
In June, Macron further announced that its military presence in the Sahel region of West Africa where around 5 100 soldiers were deployed would undergo a major transformation and will no longer serve in its current form, but rather a new mission that would rely on other partners.
Macron told reporters they would make a draw down in “an organised way”, which includes the number of soldiers France would keep in the region.
“We will have to hold a dialogue with our African and European partners... We will keep a counter-terrorism pillar with special forces with several hundred forces,” said Macron.
“There will be a second pillar that will be co-operation, and which we will reinforce.”
However, the suspension was short-lived as joint military operations resumed one month later following consultations with the Malian transitional authorities.
In September, reports had surfaced that a deal between Mali and the Wagner group was underway, which prompted the French officials to take yet another stance against Mali’s military.
French Defence Minister Florence Parly warned against the deal in which Mali’s government was looking to hire the services of 1000 Russian mercenaries. Mali did not deny reports of the deal, with a spokesperson for the defence ministry saying: “Mali intends to diversify its relationships in the medium term in order to ensure the security of the country”.
Meanwhile, Mali Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga accused France of training a terrorist group known as Ansar al-din, who are allegedly linked to al-qaeda and were operating in the country.
In an interview on Russian stateowned domestic news agency RIA Novosti, Maiga said the French forces had created an enclave in Kidal, a town situated in the northern region of Mali.
“Mali has no access to Kidal. This is an enclave controlled by France,” said Maiga.
“They have armed groups trained by French officers. We have evidence. We do not understand this situation and do not want to tolerate it,” he said.
December marked the scaling down of France’s military forces, which began back in 2013 as French soldiers left the city of Timbuktu, where Russian soldiers had later been deployed.
Heading into last month, Ecowas imposed a trade embargo on Mali after elections got postponed, with France, the US and EU backing the sanctions.
The situation remains uncertain, with many wondering if democracy would return to Mali.