FRANCE WILL NOT STOP ITS WAR ON TERROR BECAUSE OF MALI’S “IRRESPONSIBLE” GOVERNMENT

Wed 02 February 2022:

France will not abandon the battle against terrorism in the Sahel area because of the military junta in Mali’s “irresponsible” conduct, the country’s foreign minister said Tuesday.

Jean-Yves Le Drian defended France’s military presence in Mali in front of legislators, who criticized the Macron administration for the humiliation of the country’s diplomatic mission after Mali’s transitional government ousted French ambassador Joel Meyer.

The struggle against terrorism would continue in the Sahel, he asserted, because it is not an event that will end due to the “irresponsibility of a coup government.”

Tensions have escalated in recent weeks between the two countries following heated exchanges. The Malian government lambasted the former colonial power, asking it to get rid of its “colonial reflexes” and expelled the envoy in response to Le Drian’s remarks that the military authority was “out of control.”

The transitional government led by the military junta that seized power last May announced its plans to stay in power for up to five years after rejecting a February 2022 deadline set by the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Pointing to the “political and military rupture,” Le Drian said “the subject we have before us is not a Franco-Malian subject but a subject between the international community and Mali, between Africans and Mali…a subject for our own collective security.”

He maintained that France’s military presence, which is being strongly opposed in Mali, is validated every year by the international community.

Several European countries are concerned over the worsening political situation and the Malian government’s decisions, including deploying mercenaries from the Russian paramilitary organization Wagner Group while demanding that European military forces withdraw from the country.

The French-led Takuba Task Force, a group of elite soldiers from several European countries assigned to accompany Malian soldiers in fighting extremist jihadist groups in the Sahel region, is in grave danger after Bamako denied Danish troops permission to deploy and Sweden announced that its forces will leave in March. Norway has likewise stated that it will not send troops since their safety cannot be guaranteed.

According to a government official, France is reconsidering its position in the Takuba troops, but it will maintain its military operations in other West African countries.

Paris, which has maintained soldiers in Mali since 2013, has announced a reduction in its military presence, including the termination of Operation Barkhane, the reduction of personnel, and the closure of facilities this year.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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