US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Saturday warned the Russian group of mercenaries Wagner against interference in Mali, calling for a rapid transition to civilian power in the country plagued by violence.
To read also In Mali, the troubled game of the junta with the Russian mercenaries of Wagner
Visiting Senegal, the last stop on his African tour, Mr. Blinken declared that the United States "
contributes with Mali and other partners to the efforts for stability
" in this country, the scene of frequent jihadist attacks on funds. inter-community clashes.
"
I would just like to add that I think it would be unfortunate if foreign actors got involved in making things even more difficult and more complicated, and I am thinking in particular of the Wagner group
," he told reporters. .
The ruling junta in Bamako threatens to use the services of this Russian private company suspected of being close to Russian President Vladimir Putin to help in the fight against the jihadists.
Wagner's presence has been reported in Ukraine, Syria and Africa.
For many NGOs and journalists, Russia uses the Wagner group and its mercenaries to serve its interests abroad, which the Kremlin denies.
The French Foreign Affairs and Armed Ministers, Jean-Yves Le Drian and Florence Parly, spoke in Paris on November 12 with their counterparts Sergei Lavrov and Sergei Choïgou "
expressed the unacceptable nature of the deployment of mercenaries from Wagner in the Sahelo-Saharan strip
”, according to a statement from French diplomacy.
The States of West Africa (ECOWAS) imposed on November 7 individual sanctions on the members of the junta in Mali because of the delay in the organization of the elections which must consecrate the return of power to civilians after the double putsh of August 2020 and May 2021.
Antony Blinken said he had reached an agreement with the Senegalese authorities for a transition to democracy in Mali.
"
As soon as a democratically elected government takes office, the international community will be ready to support Mali,
" he said.
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