And when people thought it could not get any worse for Mali,the French have eventually decided to end their operations in the Sahelian country. Operation Berkhane is officially over. Other countries have also taken similar steps to wind up their operations in Mali citing various reasons such as diplomatic differences and political instability. Britain has committed to ending its operations in Mali for its three hundred troops in the next six months while Germany is planning the same course of action by the end of 2023. Germany has more than two thousand troops in the country. This comes after other countries like Denmark,Estonia and Sweden had ended their operations in the African country early this year while Egypt had also suspended its military assistance to Mali.
The complete withdrawal of French forces from Mali, however,does not come as a surprise to many especially those who assuredly consider diplomacy and international relations their hobby horse. The relations between Paris and Bamako has been deteriorated since Mali experienced two consecutive military coups in 2020 and 2021. Their diplomatic spat reached a crescendo this year when Mali ordered the departure of french ambassador from the country. Mali has consistently accused France at the United Nations of violating its airspace and supporting the insurgents who have been wreaking havoc in the country. The relationship of the two countries is at its all time low.
How it all began
Mali is a former french colony which its gained independence in 1960. Like all the other francophone African countries,it largely maintained closer ties with France after independence. Problems basically started arising in Mali when the Northern tribes mostly Tuaregs started a revolt against the Malian government wanting to create their own country carved out of Mali. They wanted to name their country Azawad. There had been other tuareg revolutions before like in 1963 and 1991 but the 2012 one was a bit disparate. The distinction was due to the fact the elements of the terrorist groups like ISIS and Al-Qaeda had infiltrated the revolution. These were Al-Qaeda groups that left Libya after the fall of Gaddafi and crossed the border into the countries of the Sahel like Mali,Chad and Niger. Leaders of NATO countries who brought down Gaddafi failed to factor in the consequences of such actions. The ideologies of the Al-Qaeda were incongruous with those of the Azawad factions. While the Tuaregs wanted the autonomy of Northern Mali(Azawad), Al-Qaeda wanted to control the whole of the Sahel under Islam and sharia law. The unfortunate marriage between the Tuaregs and Al-Qaeda was made possible by the money provided by the Al-Qaeda leaders for the revolution. The Al-Qaeda took the cities and military bases of Gao,Kidal and Timbuktu within two days. The military retreated to the southern regions. The government was overwhelmed and help was needed fast. The Tuaregs were shunned out and pushed and driven away from Timbuktu and Gao by the islamist militants.
The French came in after a distress call from Malian authorities and did well to push back the insurgents out of Gao,Kidal and Timbuktu within a short time. There arrival was filled with pomp,fanfare and celebrations. Nine years later, the brouhaha has turned into something undesired. The lack of plan to end the issue of insecurity definitively has not gone well with the Malians who continue to suffer at the hands of the jihadists. The French and the United Nations peacekeeping mission now seemed to have overstayed their welcome and change was needed. The leader of the recent military coup,Colonel Assimi Goita invited the Russians under the Wagner military group, something which has not gone well with the Europeans. They consider Africa their domain and they do not do well with competition.
Will Mali survive after this?
The European union together led by the French are leaving Mali at a critical point in its quest for survival. The security situation is continuing to deteriorate. The Russians are still busy with their war in Ukraine and help which Mali needs might not be forthcoming. Although the Malian foreign minister,Abdoulaye Diop has continuously repeated the need to conduct engagement in a bilateral way,the Europeans are not coming back. This leaves Mali with less choices at a time when they need all hands on deck. The relationship between Mali and its neighbors is also frosty for instance in the case of forty six Ivorians detained by the Malians forces. The diplomatic efforts by Ivory Coast and ECOWAS to solve the issue have hit a snag on several occasions. Sanctions have also been imposed on the Malian junta and government. At this time,it does not seem rosy to Mali.
However, African leaders have been pursuing the doctrine of African solutions to African problems recently and have been successful in some cases like the Ethiopian peace deal with the TPLF brokered by leaders of various African countries. This might be the best option for Mali since a decade of foreign intervention has not brought any change. The hypothetical narrative going around is that the presence of foreign forces always only worsen the situation. The best example is the Democratic Republic of Congo with decades of foreign inventions with a worsening crisis. Both Mali and DRC have a lot of in common. They are experiencing insurgency, insecurity and instability and the two countries are also endowed with deep pockets of natural resources. It is time for homegrown solutions. Although it will not be easy for Mali,it is a road that must be taken.
Anonymous 