France Cannot Stay In Mali At Any Price - Defense Minister Florence Parly

French troops cannot stay in Mali at any price, as conditions of their engagement there are deteriorating, French Defense Minister Florence Parly said Saturday after a recent decision of Paris and its allies to work out their further activities in the African country

PARIS (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 29th January, 2022) French troops cannot stay in Mali at any price, as conditions of their engagement there are deteriorating, French Defense Minister Florence Parly said Saturday after a recent decision of Paris and its allies to work out their further activities in the African country.

"We must note that the conditions of our operation, whether military, economic, or political, are getting more and more difficult, in a nutshell, we cannot stay in Mali at any price," Parly told the radio station France Inter.

The minister added that France is willing to continue fighting terrorism in Mali, and for that new conditions must be defined.

"Today, Mali is ruled by a junta, which is the result of a double coup the legitimacy of which is still questionable. And this junta is obviously trying to remain in power for as long as possible," Parly said.

France launched the counterterrorism mission Barkhane in 2014 in the African region of Sahel. The mission involved forces of the G5 Sahel countries, including Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, and Mauritania. In summer 2021, French President Emmanuel Macron said that Operation Barkhane would be reformed into an international counterterrorist alliance. France has begun reducing its presence in Mali in December 2021.