France’s defense minister has warned her Malian counterpart against hiring Russian private security firm Vagner to fight Islamic militants in the Sahel.
“Such a choice would be one of isolation,” French Defense Minister Florence Parly told reporters on September 20 after meeting Defense Minister Colonel Sadio Camara during a visit to Mali.
A Malian Defense Ministry official told AFP on condition of anonymity that Camara assured Parly that no decision had been made.
Paris is planning to reduce troop numbers across the Sahel by early 2022, and the Malian Defense Ministry official said that France’s “abandonment” of Mali meant “everything had to be considered to secure the country.” The official said that Parly denied that France is abandoning Mali.