France has suspended counterterrorism cooperation with Mali and ordered two Malian diplomats in Paris to leave, the French foreign ministry said on Friday, a move that followed Bamako’s August arrest of a French national accused of plotting to destabilise the state.
A source familiar with the matter said the detainee is an intelligence operative. A foreign official focused on Mali said the man is a former French military officer who had been working on terrorism issues. The French foreign ministry declined to say whether he is an intelligence agent; in August it described him as an embassy staffer in Bamako and called Mali’s accusations unfounded. Mali’s foreign ministry declined to comment.
Paris also declared two staff members from the Malian embassy and consulate persona non grata. In a reciprocal step, Mali named five French embassy employees persona non grata, France said. Paris warned it could take further measures if its citizen is not released.
Relations between France and Mali have frayed in recent years. After coups in 2020 and 2021 brought a military-led government to power, Bamako ended military ties with Paris and deepened cooperation with Russia to fight Islamist militants entrenched in the north. The Sahel region’s wider political upheavals — including takeovers in Burkina Faso and Niger — have further strained France’s standing in West Africa.
Source:Radar Africa
