Russian soldiers deployed in Mali.
In order to ensure the training of the Malian forces in a base which the French troops left in December, many Russian instructors are based in Timbuktu, in the north of Mali, announced, Thursday, January 6, a spokesperson of the. Malian army.
"They are about fifty, specifies Wassim Nasr, specialist in jihadist movements, and have taken up residence in the barracks of the Malian air force and not in the French barracks".
The transitional government announced last month that "Russian trainers" had arrived in Mali, without saying anything about their assignment or their number.
This situation provoked a strong reaction from France and its European allies, who warned the Malian authorities against any deployment of mercenaries from the Russian private security company Wagner.
"Where's the harm?"
Bamako assures us that the Russian soldiers who arrived in Mali are regular troops deployed under a bilateral defense agreement, under which Moscow also provided equipment to the Malian army.
"We bought (from Russia) new planes and equipment. It costs a lot less to train there than to go there. Where is the harm?" of the Malian army interviewed by Reuters.
The spokesperson did not say how many Russian soldiers had been sent to Timbuktu and residents interviewed by Reuters said that although they were visible on the city's streets, they did not know how many there were.
The Russian Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to Reuters' requests.
French forces left Timbuktu and several others from their bases in northern Mali last month, as part of the reorganization of Operation Barkhane, announced last summer by President Emmanuel Macron, which is to result in a substantial downsizing.
With AFP
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