Mali: Last German troops return, told mission 'not in vain'

The last Bundeswehr troops serving in Mali as part of the international MINUSMA peacekeeping mission flew back to a German air base on Friday. 

This follows the gradual shutdown of the operation after Mali's military government forged close ties with Russia and ultimately demanded first that French soldiers leave and then that all international peacekeepers depart.

What did Boris Pistorius tell the troops? 

Despite the abrupt end to their duties, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told the soldiers they had served with distinction. 

"In the end, the political circumstances in Mali for a useful mission simply did not exist anymore. Your withdrawal was, therefore, the consistent and correct decision," Pistorius said at a ceremony at the Wunstorf air base in northern Germany. 

A group of just over 300 soldiers returned on two transport planes on Friday. Germany's Defense Ministry said roughly 20,000 Bundeswehr military personnel had served in Mali over the years. 

"So, what is our conclusion? You, dear soldiers, you have fulfilled your mission. Your achievements were excellent, and what you, and the contingents before you, achieved was not in vain and did not go unnoticed," the Social Democrat (SPD) politician said.  

Mali coup leaders ordered foreign forces out

Mali's current military government took power in a coup in 2021, deposing rival soldiers who had seized power the previous year. Both juntas claimed their rule was a temporary step and that they were dissatisfied with the former government's efforts in fighting insurgencies.

The new leadership in Bamako started cultivating closer ties to Russia, and particularly to its quasi-official international mercenary Wagner Group for security matters. 

Soon, the junta was demanding first that troops from colonial power France leave its soil, which prompted international members of the roughly 13,000-strong MINUSMA force to start winding down the mission of their own accord. In July, the junta called for all UN peacekeepers to leave. 

The government of Colonel Assimi Goita, the interim president, recently again delayed plans for elections, citing unspecified "technical reasons." It did not announce a new target date for what would be the first national vote since 2018 as it postponed the February 2024 appointment.

The story echoes the recent history of several West African countries, including Guinea, Burkina Faso and, most recently, Niger — all of which have experienced military takeovers of civilian governments since 2020 without subsequently restoring an elected government. 

Pistorius plans Niger visit, following similar coup

Pistorius told the troops on Friday that security in the Sahel region was still "of central importance" to the government in Berlin. He also lamented how "external powers like Russia and China" were trying to "exert more influence" in the region. He said that Germany would "remain present in the region," but "in an adjusted form."

To that end, Pistorius said at the ceremony that he would soon be traveling to Niger, itself the site of a coup earlier this year that most Western countries initially condemned. 

Niger's status as the last remaining major Western partner in the region has left those countries walking something of a tightrope — wanting to appear loyal to elected president and former partner Mohamed Bazoum while simultaneously trying not to burn their last regional bridges in Niamey.

Pistorius told the troops that strategic contacts in the Sahel region remained important, even after the end of the Bundeswehr's operations in Mali. 

"Therefore, I will fly to Niger early next week," he said, albeit conceding that no agreement was yet in place with the new leadership. 

"I believe that we are well advised to be present on-site, to stay in contact," Pistorius said. "Simply leaving is not the solution." 

The Bundeswehr's presence in Niger, around 120 men and women at last count according to the Defense Ministry, is around 10 times smaller than Germany's recent MINUSMA contribution had been prior to the wind-down.

Although the mission does appear to be in jeopardy given Niamey's new rulers, several ministers have also said the operation also serves German interests, hinting at least at a theoretical willingness to reach some agreement with Niger's leadership.

Difficult returns to foreign action for Bundeswehr

The military operation in Mali, which Germany participated in for around a decade, had been billed as another element of the slow process of Germany's military returning to more frequent overseas deployments.

NATO allies had long been pushing for Germany to move away from its defensive-only military posture adopted after its defeat in World War II.

The largest such example to date, by far, was in Afghanistan, a two-decade operation that also ended very differently to how Berlin might have hoped — with the Taliban regaining control of the country even as the last Western troops were still trying to leave.

msh/sms (AFP, dpa, Reuters)