Mali cuts diplomatic ties with Ukraine, accusing it of aiding a rebel attack in the African country
Mali’s government is cutting diplomatic ties with Ukraine over allegations that Kyiv aided an attack last month by armed groups in the West African country in which Malian soldiers and Russian mercenaries suffered heavy losses.
Mali’s government spokesman, Col. Abdoulaye Maiga, said in a statement Sunday that the decision to immediately cut ties was prompted by comments from a Ukrainian official indicating his country’s involvement in the insurgency in Mali.
Ukrainian military intelligence agency spokesman Andriy Yusov last week told Ukrainian broadcaster Suspilne that armed groups in Mali had received “all the necessary information they needed” from Kyiv to conduct the July attack.
Dozens of Russia’s Wagner mercenaries and Malian soldiers were killed by jihadis and rebels in July in northern Mali, in what one analyst described as the largest battleground blow to the Wagner group in years.
Ukraine’s foreign ministry said in a statement Monday that Mali had cut ties without a thorough review of the situation and without providing evidence of the country’s involvement in the attack.
https://apnews.com/article/mali-ukraine-wagner-junta-embassy-rebel-russia-senegal-a471c7332369d154af57ad0816fb3504