Military operation in Mali: France partially withdrawing, Germany investigating

Military operation in Malik
France partially withdrawing, Germany investigating

02/17/2022, 09:15 am

After “many obstacles” by the military junta, they draw results: France, its European allies and Canada end a military counter-terrorism operation in West African Mali. Still, they want to remain active in the Sahel. Berlin is also reconsidering its involvement in Mali.

France, its European allies and Canada ended military counter-terrorism operations in West African Mali. They announced in a joint statement that the Elysee Palace was published after consultations in Paris. Against this backdrop are the postponement of elections and the “many obstacles” caused by the Malian military junta. The cuts affected the French-led Barkhane and Tacuba missions. 14 European countries and Canada are involved in the Barkhane Anti-Terrorism Mission and the Tabuka Mission. Germany is not one of them.

At the request of its African partners, France intends to “continue to work closely with its European partners against terrorism in the Sahel”, according to the Elysee statement. The conditions for this are to be decided by June 2022. French President Emmanuel Macron said the withdrawal would be arranged with the support of the United Nations Mission Minusma and the Malian military. Macron then intends to travel to Brussels for the summits of the African Union and the European Union. There the situation of Mali will also be discussed.

Hundreds of Bundeswehr soldiers are currently in Malik

The federal government is also reviewing its involvement in the West African country. “The military government in Bamako has so far not sent a credible signal for an early return to democracy and is also hindering the way of French commitment,” Foreign Minister Katja Keul said in Berlin. This is regrettable and will have dire consequences.

Germany is negotiating with France and other partners that the Barkhane and Taquba counter-terrorism missions are no longer cheap under these circumstances. Referring to Germany’s participation in two other missions in Mali, Keul said, “It will also have an impact on the joint international commitment, and we are coordinating this closely with our allies.”

A distinction should be made between the EU training mission EUTM and the UN stabilization mission MINUSMA, which supports the implementation of the peace agreement and contributes to the protection of the civilian population. The goal is to improve the safety of the people and the stability of the region. About 1,000 troops are stationed in Mali as part of the UN peacekeeping force MINUSMA in the Bundeswehr. Another 300 soldiers are involved in the European training mission EUTM.

The deputy chair of the SPD parliamentary group, Gabriela Henrik, is also critical of the mission in Mali: “The federal government will certainly conclude from the Malian Putsch government’s lack of commitment to a democratic transition, hindering international troops from the West. increasing numbers of hostile behavior towards and Wagner mercenary detachment activities in Mali,” she said in a press release. “The results must be prepared, especially with the European training mission. Why should we train soldiers for the Malian coup government? I have a lot of doubts about that.”

Bundeswehr. for two billion euros

As a spokesman for the Bundeswehr Operations Command editorial network told German newspapers, a total of 4,900 troops were involved in the EU’s mission EUTM since the mission’s launch in 2013. Members of the Malian Armed Forces are trained under the mission’s umbrella. About 12,000 Bundeswehr troops took part in the MINUSMA stabilization mission.

According to the spokesman, about two billion euros have been spent so far on the deployment of the Bundeswehr in Mali. These are “operating additional expenses”.

Foreign Minister Annalena Barbock from the Greens and Defense Minister Christine Lambrecht from the SPD have both recently questioned the continuation of the military operation. The main reasons are the increasingly hostile behavior of the Malian military junta, which seeks to postpone the promised elections, and the presence of suspected Russian mercenaries.