The German government announced yesterday a gradual withdrawal of the thousand soldiers it has deployed in Mali due to the growing discomfort caused by the presence of Russian mercenaries in the African country. The authorities in Berlin are following in the footsteps of Paris and London, which have also decided to get completely out of the Malian hornet's nest.
The German decision was not easy to take within the coalition headed by Chancellor Olaf Scholz. According to the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, the progressive withdrawal formula, which will begin next summer and should end in May 2024, was the result of a compromise between the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the environmentalist Annalena Baerbock, and her defense colleague, the social democrat Christine Lambrecht. The former wanted to continue the mission, while the latter advocated a quicker end.
The planned German march calls into question the continuity of the United Nations mission in Mali, Minusma, made up of almost 18,000 people, including military, police and civilians. The bulk of soldiers is provided by Chad, Bangladesh and Egypt. A week ago it was the British who announced the withdrawal of their 300 troops from the multinational contingent.
The participation of Western forces has been made more and more difficult by the hostility of the military junta that rules in Bamako, highly dependent on mercenaries from the Russian Wagner society. It is an obvious geostrategic contradiction.
Another clear sign of tensions between the Malian authorities and the European governments, particularly the French, was Bamako's decision to ban the activities of French NGOs on its territory. In a statement, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it "regrets" the measure and stressed that it is taken "to the detriment of the Malian population." The Quai d'Orsay thanked the "essential" work carried out by the NGOs in recent years, but asked them to abide by the order. The Malian interim prime minister, Colonel Abdulaye Maïga, justified the ban by the recent French decision to suspend development aid provided by Paris to the Sahelian country.
President Emmanuel Macron denounced a few days ago "the predation project" carried out by Russia in unstable and troubled African countries. Macron alluded to this issue in Djerba (Tunisia), where the Francophonie summit was held. The president accused Russia of fueling anti-French propaganda in Africa, stoking anti-colonial resentments for the sole purpose of advancing its own interests and influence on the continent. Mali is the paradigmatic example, since it has been the base, for almost ten years, of the French anti-jihadist struggle. The French came to the rescue of Mali and now they have been driven out.
