Mali's Transitional Council agrees on "a reasonable period" for troop withdrawal

The commander of Operation Barkhane, Laurent Michon, announced that they were studying ways, in collaboration with the Malian army, to withdraw troops from "Kossi, Menaka and Gao". Michon also reported that they were reorganising the various troops "in accordance with the intentions of the different countries". He added that they were not interested in "repositioning the current apparatus in Mali elsewhere", but rather in providing "the support and cooperation" that these countries wanted. 

The commander's declarations come after French President Emmanuel Macron announced on 17 February 2022 the withdrawal of French troops from northern Mali. Putting an end, after almost a decade, to the Barkhane operation. France, along with its African and European partners, justified its decision by stating that the conditions no longer exist to continue the fight against terrorism in Mali. 

During this communiqué, Macron also said that although jihadist attacks had been reduced in the country, some French troops would remain in the area to "curb the jihadist danger" that has been spreading for years in the coastal countries of West Africa. Commander Michon explained in an interview for the German television channel Deutsche Welle that the danger of terrorism was spreading in this area like a "metastasis", especially "towards the south" of the continent. 

In this interview, the commander also explained that "the enemy moves and adapts in front of us" in constant evolution. Against this backdrop, Michon argues that "the Europeans are coming and ready to engage with the Sahelian partners". 

The reorganisation and withdrawal of French troops in Mali has been somewhat hampered by the political situation in the country, following the coup d'état in August 2020.  

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Malian military junta have failed to reach an agreement on the country's political transition process.  

The ECOWAS mission began on 25 February 2022 after unfinished talks on civilian rule in Mali. The mediator and former president of the Republic of Nigeria, Goodluck Jonathan, was unable to reach an agreement with the military junta now in power in Mali on how long the transition would last. During the negotiations, pressure was put on the ruling army to call elections later this year. 

Although tensions between the two sides are quite latent, ECOWAS and the military junta have agreed to continue talks over the coming months to reach a common ground. 

This election delay forced ECOWAS to impose sanctions on Mali last month. This included a trade embargo. Despite this, the military government has resisted all international pressure to restore a civilian government, breaking its commitment to call elections this February. This is compounded by a law passed by the military junta that would allow them to rule for another five years without holding elections. 

The operation was launched in August 2014 to replace the Serval counter-terrorism mission, but with a much broader geographical focus. The force with almost 4,500 soldiers had troops in Mali, Burkina Faso, Niger and Chad. 

Barkhane is France's largest overseas operation, with a budget of more than 600 million euros a year. In addition to the fight against terrorism, these troops have also carried out other missions such as various local development activities.