Mali: UN Troops must Leave

By Staff, Agencies

Mali has called on the United Nations to end its decade-long peacekeeping mission “without delay,” saying the international military force has only fueled tensions and instability in the African country.

Addressing the UN Security Council on Friday, Malian Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop said officials are willing to continue coordination with the UN, but demanded an end to its “stabilization mission.” The UN force, known as MINUSMA, was deployed in 2013 in response to the Tuareg rebellion in the northern part of the country.

“Unfortunately, MINUSMA seems to have become a part of the problem in fueling inter-community tensions,” Diop said, calling for the withdrawal of UN troops.

The minister accused UN forces of “begetting mistrust among the Malian population” and creating a “crisis of confidence” within the government.

MINUSMA head El Ghassim Wane responded by saying that it would be “nearly impossible” to continue the UN mission without the consent of the host country. The UN has until June 30 to extend the deployment, which requires nine votes in favor from the Security Council and no vetoes from its five permanent members.

Relations between Bamako and the UN have deteriorated over the last year, with Mali’s interim military authorities suspending troop rotations under MINUSMA in July 2022. The decision came shortly after the Malian authorities arrested 49 soldiers from Cote d’Ivoire and described them as “mercenaries.” Ivorian officials, meanwhile, insisted that the troops were part of the peacekeeping mission.