The ruling junta in Bamako asked France on Friday, February 18 to "
withdraw without delay
" its soldiers from Mali, the day after the announcement by Paris and its partners of a staggered withdrawal over the next few months.
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In a statement read on national television, the spokesman for the government installed by the military, Colonel Abdoulaye Maïga, describes the announcement of the French disengagement as a "
flagrant violation
" of the agreements between the two countries.
He also says that the results of nine years of French engagement in Mali “
have not been satisfactory
”.
Read alsoIn Mali, the anti-French headlong rush
“
In view of these repeated breaches (of) the defense agreements, the government invites the French authorities to withdraw, without delay, the Barkhane and Takuba forces from national territory, under the supervision of the Malian authorities
,” said Colonel Maïga.
The request for immediate withdrawal from the colonels who came to power by force in August 2020 is a new challenge to the former French partner, after months of rising tensions.
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