Is This the End of the French Project in Africa’s Sahel?

Vijay Prashad Mali recently announced that it would no longer be part of the G5 Sahel. From the beginning, it was clear that the formation of the G5 Sahel was encouraged by France, and that the real focus was to be security. On May 15, 2022, the military junta in Mali announced that it would no longer…

Mali is Deprived of an Opportunity to Follow Policies Independent of the West

Vladimir Danilov Attempts by the inhabitants of the states of the African continent to throw off the shackles of modern neo-colonialism and pursue a policy independent of the West are being met with active resistance from the very same West. Another confirmation of this is the recent coup attempt thwarted by the authorities in Mali….

Mali’s Military Ejects France but Faces Serious Challenges

Vijay Prashad French soldiers of the 126th Infantry Regiment and Malian soldiers in Operation Barkhane, 17 March 2016. Photo: Wikimedia Commons Colonel Assimi Goïta, who leads the military junta, said that the agreement with the French “brought neither peace, nor security, nor reconciliation” and that the population aspires “to stop the flow of Malian blood”…

Paris Gets Kicked Out of French Africa

Vladimir Danilov Mali’s government spokesman Colonel Abdoulaye Maïga, who was the country’s prime minister in 2017, announced in a televised address that the African country was tearing up defense agreements with France. Although Paris has called the decision “unjustified”, France is nevertheless continuing to withdraw its military from Mali, following the Malian government’s earlier call for…

France Shifting Blame on Russia in Mali as Paris is Losing Influence & Control in Africa

Ekaterina Blinova A mass grave discovered by Malian soldiers near a vacated French base prompted Paris to accuse a private Russian paramilitary organisation, Wagner Group, of planting corpses there to smear the French Armed Forces. However, Bamako renounced its military cooperation agreement with France on 2 May following the gruesome discovery. “France is desperate to…

Mali: Counter-Terrorism Successes and Effective Resistance to Interference

Mikhail Gamandiy-Egorov At the very moment when the Republic of Mali is experiencing successes on the ground in the fight against terrorism, and this without the involvement of any Western forces, the Elysée establishment and its Western allies are trying by all means to denigrate these successes. Although this was perfectly predictable. For Malians, the…

French Withdrawal from Mali Will Redraw the Political Map of West Africa

Ramzy Baroud Finally, France will be leaving Mali, nearly a decade after the original military intervention in 2013. The repercussions of this decision will hardly be confined to this West African nation, but will likely spread to the entirety of the Sahel Region; in fact, the whole of Africa. France’s decision to end its military presence in…

Why Protests Erupted in Mali, With People Demanding France Out and Thanking Russia for Support

Kribsoo Diallo  Thousands of demonstrators took to Mali’s streets on January 14 to demonstrate against sanctions the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) imposed on the country after the military government’s supposed delay in the transitional map (plan) to transfer power to civilians. The military junta called for mobilizations throughout the country. Protests took…

Mali vs. Ecowas: Bamako Can Count on International Support

Mikhail Gamandiy-Egorov In the current tug of war between Mali and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the Malian authorities are unlikely to relent, as they can count on a number of African and international supporters. But also on domestic popular support and broad sympathies from pan-African civil society. Many observers have noted…

Mali Cancels Military Agreements with France

Voltairenet On 10 January 2022, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) decided to close land and air borders between member-countries and ali and to freeze assets of the Republic of Mali in ECOWAS Central Banks, as sanctions in response to the announcement by the transitional authorities to postpone the presidential election to the…

Russia’s Shadows in Sahel Region

M. K. BHADRAKUMAR Tailors busy stitching Russian flags to meet rising demand in Bamako, the capital of Mali, December 26, 2021   On Friday, Mali’s transitional government has clarified that it is engaged with Russian military trainers even as French troops are drawing down. So, it is official that Russian security personnel are deployed to…

What Is France Hiding in the Sahel?

Clinton Nzala @FungaiNzala BAMAKO, MALI — On the 8th of October, Choguel Maïga, the prime minister of Mali, boldly informed the world that its former colonial power, France, was sponsoring terrorists in the country’s northern region. Standing before dozens of cameras and microphones, he provided details on how the French army had established an enclave…