French President Emmanuel Macron and his Senegalese counterpart Macky Sall expressed their concerns on Friday about the activities of the Russian paramilitary company Wagner in Mali.
During an interview at the Élysée, the French President suggested that the Russian military group ought to leave Mali. The two heads of state denounced the "crimes" perpetrated by Wagner against "certain communities," such as the Fulani, indicated the Elysée.
"Wagner must leave Mali," indicated the French President, who holds the rotating presidency of the European Union (EU), to his Senegalese counterpart, the current President of the African Union (AU). According to the Elysée, the two presidents agreed on the fact that "Wagner is the praetorian guard of a regime whose primary objective is to protect itself," indirectly referring to the President of the Transition in Mali, the Colonel Assimi Goïta, as well as the National Transitional Council (CNT).
France held a decade-long military presence in Mali. Several decisions of the Malian government led to very tense relations with the French officials, which announced its decision to reduce its military presence in the Sahel country fighting terrorism.
In reaction to comments from the Elysée, the head of Russian diplomacy, Sergei Lavrov, accused Paris of acting with a "colonial mentality" towards Mali and declared that the Wagner company was present there on a "commercial basis."
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