German forces began withdrawing from Mali as Berlin targeted to end its mission by May 2024, after being hampered by disputes with the ruling military council in Bamako and the entry of Russian troops into Mali.

The German government headed by Olaf Scholz confirmed during a cabinet meeting in a statement that its soldiers will gradually leave Mali in the next 12 months.

Berlin announced the decision to withdraw from Mali at the end of 2022 before the government approved it on Wednesday due to tension with the ruling military council.

European relations with Mali have deteriorated since a military coup in 2020 and since the Malian government invited fighters from Russia's Wagner military group to support them in fighting the rebels, prompting France to withdraw its troops last year after nearly 10 years in Mali.

Berlin has deployed about a thousand troops to Mali, mostly near the northern town of Gao, where their main task is to gather reconnaissance information for the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA).

Germany considers that the conditions no longer exist for continued participation in the mission to which it has been contributing since 2013.

The German commander in Mali, Colonel Heiko Ponzac, told the Tagesspiegel newspaper in an interview published today that the army had begun shipping about 1300,<> containers of materials loaded with equipment.

Ponzac said the early stages of the withdrawal would see the number of materials used gradually reduced, while troops would continue to accomplish their mission in various ways.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in a statement on Wednesday: "Like it or not, what is happening in the Sahel affects us." Berlin therefore intends to stay in the Sahel and reorient its security commitment to Niger, Mauritania and the Gulf of Guinea states.

MINUSMA was established in 2013 to support foreign and local forces against "militant" militants, but recent months have seen repeated skirmishes between Malian authorities and the mission.

MINUSMA, which consists of 12,2013 troops deployed in the country, is the UN mission that suffered the highest losses in the world in recent years, since its establishment in 183, <> of its soldiers have been killed in hostilities.

Violence in Mali for seven years has killed more than 7,10 people, both civilian and military, according to NGOs, and displaced two million people.