In its "engagement against terrorism" in the Sahel zone (Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Chad), French imperialism, among other imperialist countries like Germany, has also stationed thousands of soldiers in Mali since 2013.
To date, there are still 5,000 soldiers on the ground to counter "the progression of terrorist threats and organised crime, climate change and strong population growth - factors that contribute to the weakening of the region". At the same time, a "political, military and developmental solution” should be found with the lackeys on the ground. Obviously without success, because there are attacks on the imperialist armies again and again, only recently a French soldier was killed.
Uniform of the soldiers who take part in the French led military operation "Barkhane"
Now the French government made public that it wants to withdraw about half of its troops. Malian Prime Minister Choguel Maiga regrets this decision, saying he feels "abandoned". France reacts irritably, denying that it is a unilateral decision. Coincidentally, elections were supposed to be held in Mali next spring to replace the transitional government with an elected one. That France could now use their partial withdrawal as leverage against the current prime minister would be a possibility. At the same time, another interest of French imperialism plays into the situation. The Malian government wanted to hire a Russian security firm after the partial withdrawal was made public - France reacted with a threat of a complete withdrawal from the country if Russian security forces were stationed in Mali. That the mission is not a "peacekeeping operation" without its own interests becomes quite clear here.
