Translated material
Mali turned to Russian PMCs after the withdrawal of French troops
The authorities of Mali said that the withdrawal of the French military contingent from the country made it necessary for it to look for new partners in order to "fill the void" in the north of the state. On the eve of Sergey Lavrov said that the leadership of Mali turned to the Russian PMC.
The decision of France to stop the military operation "Barkhan", directed against the rebellious Tuareg and Islamic terrorist groups, forced the leadership of Mali to look for new "ways and means" to ensure security. This was stated by Prime Minister Kokalla Maiga, speaking at a session of the UN General Assembly.
He also stressed that Mali is forced to look for new partners in order to "fill the void" left by the withdrawal of French troops. At the same time, he did not specify which partners he was talking about.
On the eve of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, during a press conference in New York , he said that the Malian authorities turned to the Russian PMCs, since France decided to "significantly reduce its military contingent." According to the minister, the military operation of Paris did not bring tangible results, in connection with which Mali asked PMCs for help in the fight against terrorism.
The fact that the country's leadership is negotiating with Wagner PMCs was previously reported by France 24.
The French Foreign Ministry responded by saying that the activities of Russian mercenaries are "completely incompatible" with the military presence of Paris. A negative reaction to the potential agreements came from Germany. also
Berlin and Paris said that in this case, the countries will reconsider the advisability of a military presence in Mali. In addition, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian warned that the appearance of Wagner PMCs in Mali could lead to "serious consequences" for Russia.
At the same time, the press secretary of the President of Russia Dmitry Peskov assured that the Russian military is not present on the territory of Mali and Moscow is not conducting official negotiations on this matter.