The arrival of these forces comes amid an intensifying dispute between Mali and European countries that object to the presence of “mercenaries” affiliated with a Russian company in the African country, which is viewed as a sphere of influence for Western European countries.
The sources added that sending Russian fighters to Bamako comes within the framework of a defense agreement between the Malian Military Council and the Russian Ministry of Defense, stressing that the fighters do not belong to the Russian “Wagner” company for security services.
The sources said that the forces that were sent to Mali belong to the “Siwa Security” group, which is close to the Russian Ministry of Defense, and that the Western powers are well aware of this, but prefer to link the incoming fighters with “Wagner”.
European objection
European countries, led by France and Germany, had previously objected to what was reported about the presence of Wagner fighters, and 15 countries participating in the fight against terrorism in the African Sahel issued a statement condemning the start of the deployment of Wagner personnel, days after the European Union imposed sanctions on the Russian company.
Meanwhile, the Mali government said it was “presenting an official denial” of the “alleged spread of elements of a private security company in Mali”.
Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso have been living in a cycle of terrorism since 2015, due to armed militias linked to “Al-Qaeda” and “ISIS in West Africa”, and attacks caused more than two thousand deaths and displaced .4 million people.
Cold War in the Coast
Experts see European-American concern about Russia’s presence in West Africa as a key point in the new version of the “cold war” that began this year between the West and Russia. The region is the “vital space” of France, a rich source of natural resources and strategic minerals, as well as a military base from which to prevent the threat of illegal immigration to Europe.
And political analyst from Niger, Idriss Ayat, says, “The Sahel is just a playing field in the struggle between international powers. As for Mali’s stability and territorial integrity, neither France nor Russia matter, but the logic that governs matters is that the enemy of my enemy is my temporary friend.”
Speaking to “Sky News Arabia”, Ayat mentioned that NATO announced in September that any Russian intervention through “Wagner” in the Sahel region may lead to the withdrawal of European forces, and the withdrawal of support received by the Bamako government from the international community since 2011.
However, the Malian Prime Minister, Shogul Kukala Mega, responded that his country did not communicate and does not intend to cooperate with the “Wagner Group”, but rather cooperates with the Russian Ministry of Defense as a sovereign country, and will not receive orders and will not be subject to blackmail from anyone, in reference to France and its allies, according to Verses.
Paris pledged in June to rearrange its military presence in the Sahel region, by evacuating its three bases in the far north of Mali to concentrate its forces near the borders with Niger and Burkina Faso, and will reduce its forces from five thousand soldiers to 2500 to 3000 by 2023.
Despite the decline in France’s popularity in the Sahel region after the heavy losses incurred by terrorist organizations to its forces since 2019, the national armies, especially the Malian army, are unable to confront terrorist organizations, which prompted the Malian authorities to search for a possible alternative to the French forces.
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