Mali: France Suspends Anti-Terrorism Cooperation With Mali After Diplomat’s Arrest
Diplomatic relations between Paris and Bamako have deteriorated further, with anti-terrorism cooperation suspended and diplomats expelled on both sides.
France has suspended its counterterrorism cooperation with Mali and ordered two Malian diplomats to leave Paris, following the arrest of a French diplomatic staff member in Bamako last month.
According to French diplomatic sources, the two Malian officials – attached to the embassy and consulate in Paris – were declared persona non grata and given until Saturday to depart.
The move is the latest twist in a spiralling row between Paris and Bamako, which has been under military rule since successive coups in 2020 and 2021.
On 15 August, Mali’s junta announced it had detained a French national accused of spying for the French intelligence services.
The authorities under Colonel Assimi Goïta claimed “foreign states” were backing a plot to destabilise Mali’s institutions, allegedly involving a fringe group within the Malian armed forces.
France firmly rejected those accusations as “baseless” and demanded the “immediate release” of its staff member, who it stressed was a duly accredited diplomat.
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‘Violation of international law’
According to AFP, a French diplomatic source said Mali’s decision amounted to “a deliberate violation of one of the most fundamental rules of international law.”
Paris insisted that the detained staffer had been contributing to joint anti-terrorism efforts when he was “arbitrarily arrested.”
In retaliation, France has not only suspended its security cooperation but also warned that “further measures” could follow if its national is not released swiftly.
Bamako, for its part, responded this week by declaring five French diplomats unwelcome.
The group had already left the country on Sunday, according to French officials.
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Mali’s relationship with France – its former colonial power – has soured dramatically since the junta took charge.
Facing a decade-long jihadist insurgency, Bamako has shifted away from Western partners and into the orbit of Russia.
Its military has partnered with Russian mercenaries from the so-called Africa Corps, who are tasked with battling Al-Qaeda and Islamic State affiliates but are also accused of serious abuses against civilians.
Despite mounting tensions, intelligence-sharing between Paris and Bamako had continued up until now – a rare point of collaboration in an otherwise fraught relationship.
That channel of cooperation has now been cut off.
By RFI website.
