Mali’s Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop on Friday has said the government was “ruling nothing out” regarding its relations with France, amid brewing tensions between the two countries, reported France 24.
In an interview with French broadcaster RFI on Friday, Diop said that the question of French troops leaving Mali’s land is not on the table currently.
“If a presence at a given moment is judged to be contrary to the interests of Mali, we will not hesitate to assume our responsibilities,” Diop said, adding that “we are not at that point”.
The French government has deployed thousands of troops in Mali to help the Sahel state military that is struggling to contain a rebellion that first emerged in 2012, before spreading to neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger.
Diop’s remarks came after French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told media earlier on Friday that “things cannot stay the way they are” between the French government and Mali’s ruling military leaders. He said Paris was discussing with its partners how to adapt its operations to continue the fight against Islamist militants in the Sahel state.
“The junta is truly out of control,” the French Foreign Minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, told RTL radio.
“European, French and international forces are seeing measures that are restricting them,” he said. “Given the situation, given the rupture in the political and military frameworks, we cannot continue like this.”
Tensions have escalated between Mali and its international partners after the ruling military junta failed to organize elections following two coups. The West Africa bloc ECOWAS also imposed a trade embargo and shut borders with Mali earlier this month.
As per reports, Mali’s military junta has also deployed Russian private military contractors, which some European Union member countries have said is incompatible with their mission.
The worsening instability in Mali has claimed thousands of lives and displaced hundreds of thousands. Several military operations have been launched to tackle the threat, including the French Barkhane operation and the G5 Sahel force.
