French Foreign Affairs Minister, Jean-Yves Le drian on Monday said French troops would continue fighting terrorism in the Sahel region but no longer in Mali, reported Africa News. He said President Emmanuel Macron has asked to re-organize French troops in the region.
The minister’s statement came after a virtual meeting with European counterparts, on Monday. The leaders discussed their countries’ future as they fight Islamist insurgents in Western Africa. The meeting followed three weeks of consultations amid a deterioration in relations between Mali and France, the main foreign military power in the Sahel region.
Earlier this month, Mali’s ruling junta ordered Joel Meyer, the French ambassador to Mali, to leave the country in the next 72 hours over hostile and outrageous comments by France about its transitional government.
“If the conditions are no longer in place so that we can act in Mali, which is clearly the case, then we will continue to fight terrorism next door with the Sahel countries,” Le Drian said on Monday.
France had deployed troops in Mali in 2013 to drive back armed groups who were advancing on the capital. The withdrawal of French forces would mean the European special forces Takuba task force would also leave Mali. The Takuba task force comprises about 600-900 troops of which 40 percent are French and includes medical and logistical teams.
“The president wants us to re-organize,” the French Foreign Affairs Minister said. “We aren’t going, but we will re-organize to ensure the fight against terrorism continues.”
Two European and one African diplomatic source said regional and international leaders would meet on Wednesday in Paris to hold discussions with President Macron ahead of an EU-Africa summit on Thursday. Nigerian, Mauritanian, and Chadian leaders are expected to attend the meeting.
France has already cut troops in the Sahel with the aim of reducing numbers from around 5,000 to 2,500-3,000 by 2023. About half of its forces are based in Mali, so the French government would need to decide where to put them and maintain operational efficiency.
