Baku, March 31 AZERTAC

Since 2013, the German contingent has been part of the integrated multidimensional mission of the United Nations for the stabilization of the country.

Germany will initiate the withdrawal of its troops from Mali from June 2024 next, to be completed in May XNUMX. This is what the weekly "Der Spiegel" reports, recalling that the German contingent is part of the integrated multidimensional mission of the United Nations for the stabilization of Mali (Minusma), ongoing since 2013, agenzia nova reported.

The departments deployed by Germany have a maximum limit of 1.400 personnel. 1.270 servicemen are currently stationed at Camp Castor. Lastly, the participation of the German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) in Minusma was extended by the federal government until May 31 next year, introducing the possibility of a withdrawal in the event that the safety of the troops is no longer guaranteed. In November 2022, the then German Defense Minister, Christine Lambert, announced that the Bundeswehr's withdrawal from Mali would begin "from the summer of 2023". Last January, Lambrecht's successor at the helm of Defense, Boris Pistorius declared that staying in the Sahel country "until May 2024 makes absolutely no sense in the current conditions".

From June, the Bundeswehr should therefore start dismantling Camp Castor, transferring the material first by land to Niger and from there by plane to Germany. In fact, the dimensions of the base in Mali do not allow the landing of transport planes. In particular, the Heron reconnaissance drones are expected to return to Germany "by September at the latest". Since last October, remotely piloted aircraft have been stationary on the runways in Gao because the military junta in power in Bamako has not granted the Bundeswehr flight permits. As noted by "Der Spiegel", this is "one of the many examples of the lack of cooperation" of the Malian authorities who are pushing the German government to withdraw troops from the country. The decision is the result of a compromise reached in December 2022 between the chancellor Olaf Scholz, Lambrecht and the Foreign Minister, Annalena Baerbock (Greens). Back then, it was agreed that the Bundeswehr would leave Mali by May next year at the latest. Originally, Baerbock's department supported the permanence of the German contingent in MINUSMA, underlining Germany's international responsibility. The Defense, on the other hand, was against it and justified the withdrawal both with the "continuous harassment" to which the military junta of Mali subjects the troops and with the growing risks for their safety. The mandate of the Bundeswehr will therefore be extended by one year, but will be structured around an orderly return of the contingent to Germany.

Since 2013, the German forces in Mali have also been participating in the EU training mission for the country (Eutm Mali), suspended in 2022 due to conflicts with the Bamako authorities. In the fight against jihadist terrorists and insurgents, the military junta increasingly relies on the mercenaries of the Russian Wagner group and on the supplies of arms and materials it receives from Moscow. In this way, as underlined by "Der Spiegel", Mali "disqualifies itself as a partner of the West". Now, according to intelligence sources, Bamako's military is using combat drones with Russian personnel in joint operations. This could be one of the reasons why the Bundeswehr Herons have been denied permission to fly. The goal would be to prevent the German military from acquiring information on the use of Russian-Malian remotely piloted aircraft.