PARIS - Mali's capacity to fight against Islamist groups on its territory its now Mali's own problem, France's Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Friday, a day after his government announced it was withdrawing from Mali.
This is a Malian problem, it is not a French problem any more, said le Drian in an interview with LCI television.
France and military allies said on Thursday they would leave Mali after almost a decade based there fighting Islamist insurgents around the Sahel, moving instead to Niger despite public disenchantment with Paris' role in the region.
French commanders are in contact with officials from Mali's military in order to organise the retreat of French troops from the African country, French Armed Forces Minister Florence Parly told LCI television on Thursday.
France and military allies said on Thursday they would leave Mali after almost a decade based there fighting Islamist insurgents around West Africa, moving instead to Niger despite public disenchantment with Paris' role in the region.
And in order to do so, the Chief of Staff of the French Armed Forces is in contact with the Malian military, Parly said in the LCI interview.
Meanwhile, Niger has accepted that French and European special forces will be deployed into its territory from neighbouring Mali, in order to secure the border area with the West African state, Niger's president said on Twitter on Friday.
In his first comments since France said on Thursday that it would leave Mali along with its military allies, President Mohamed Bazoum said the forces would be able to respond to threats from jihadist militants groups in the area.
Reuters