Mali Turns to Moscow for Military Assistance
An MI-171 helicopter, similar to the ones Russia sold to Mali (Wikimedia Commons).
Malian Defense Minister Colonel Sadio Camara confirmed the country’s acceptance of four military helicopters from the Russian government on September 30.The move, seen as confirmation of a warming relationship between Moscow and Bamako, is putting both European and international observers on edge.
According to Camara, the country’s acquisition of the helicopters fulfills part of a contract signed by the two states in December 2020 and enacted in June of this year. "The extreme rapidity with which this contract was drawn up shows the reliability and seriousness of this partnership," he said.
In addition to soliciting assistance from the Kremlin itself, the current Malian government—which seized power in May—has reportedly been in talks with the Wagner Group, a private military company known for its deployment of mercenary units, and which is believed to have close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin. Sources claiming to be in Wagner’s employment say the group began operations in Mali in late August, and they have since reported two Wagner casualties. An acquaintance of one of these fighters confirmed the report to Russian news platform Meduza.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov lent more credence to these reports by publicly stating on September 25 that Mali had “turned to a private military company from Russia” for peacekeeping support. He did not specify that Mali had communicated with the Wagner Group.
Mali’s ties with Russia have strengthened since ending its colonial ties with France. Paris recently announced its decision to withdraw a portion of its counterterrorism forces stationed in the Sahel, the region south of the Sahara Desert, inciting claims of “abandonment” from Malian Prime Minister Choguel Kokalla Maiga.
France currently plans to reduce its troop presence (which was instated in order to suppress a jihadist rebellion in Mali in 2013) from the 5,000 currently deployed to between 2,500 and 3,000 by 2023.
French Defense Minister Florence Parly pushed back on Maiga’s accusation at the UN General Assembly last Saturday. "When you have thousands of troops on the ground [...] and deploy brand-new tanks in the Sahel, that is hardly the attitude of a country that is looking for a way out," she said.
Nevertheless, observers are growing concerned that Russia is attempting to exploit Mali’s dissatisfaction with the French government by intervening in the country. The United Kingdom and France have both expressed fears that the Kremlin could utilize the current instability in Mali for its own interests, and the two states have encouraged Bamako to abandon all cooperation with the Wagner group.
U.K. Africa Minister Vicky Ford called on Mali to “reconsider” cooperation with Wagner, calling the group “a driver of conflict” that “capitalizes on instability for its own interests.”
Maiga, however, seems to have no intention of distancing himself or his country from the Kremlin. With a reduced French protective force in Mali, the prime minister has asserted the country’s right to “seek other partners” to boost security.