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Soldier at Gao Airport in Mali
Photo: Nicolas Remene / Le Pictorium / IMAGO
After the withdrawal of French troops on Monday, Mali appears to be increasingly openly cooperating with Russia.
According to a letter from the Bundeswehr's Operations Command to the Bundestag's Defense Committee, which SPIEGEL has seen, Russian soldiers appeared at Gao Airport in Mali just hours after the end of the French mission.
According to this, German and British forces from the UN mission Minusma spotted "20 to 30 people in military uniforms" on Monday around 11 a.m. on the airport site.
They could not have been assigned to the Malian armed forces.
It is "almost certainly" members of the Russian security forces, the letter says.
Accordingly, two fighter jets were discovered on the airfield and in a hangar, including one of the L-39 Albatross.
"Last week, L-39 Albatros aircraft were handed over by Russia to the Malian armed forces," the Bundeswehr said.
It is assumed that the L-39 cannot be operated by Malian personnel and must therefore be carried out by Russian units.
However, it is unknown what tasks the Russian forces were to take on in Gao.
The operational management of the German contingent in the Minusma mission has not been affected so far.
Defense Ministry confirms foreign troop presence in Gao
When asked by SPIEGEL, a spokesman for the Federal Ministry of Defense confirmed the arrival of an "L 39 training and ground attack aircraft from the Malian armed forces," which could possibly be the jet handed over by Russia.
They are also aware of the several dozen forces that cannot be assigned to the Malian army.
The reports would currently
"Intensively checked with the contingent and our partner," it said.
There are already suspicions in the Bundeswehr as to what goals the Malian military government is pursuing with Russian support.
The Malian armed forces wanted to further expand their area of operations in the north-east of the country, the report said.
The camps once occupied by France are to be taken over directly.
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