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EU freezes Mali training missions after coup

Wednesday, 26 August 2020 5:09 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 26 August 2020 5:09 PM ]

In this file photo, taken on August 3, 2018, German soldiers from the parachutists detachment of MINUSMA (United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali) search for IED (improvised explosive device) during a patrol on the route from Gao to Gossi, Mali. (By AFP)

The European Union has suspended its training missions in Mali after the military coup this month that removed President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita from power, EU officials said on Wednesday.

The two missions training Mali's army and police as part of international efforts to stabilize Mali and extend the state's authority are frozen because they were designed to support "the legitimate national authorities," one EU official said.

Officials said the suspension was temporary. West African mediators and Mali's coup leaders are discussing the possibility of a transitional government, which could allow the EU to eventually resume training in partnership with the United Nations.

The coup has raised the prospects of further political turmoil in Mali which, like other countries in the region, is facing an expanding threat from Islamist militants.

African Union suspends Mali following coup

The African Union (AU) suspends Mali’s membership a day after mutinous soldiers staged a coup in the West African country and forced President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita to step down.

EU defense ministers meeting in Berlin on Wednesday will discuss the situation in Mali, the officials said.

Drawn up in late 2012 to help Mali's army regain control of the country after France drove out militants in the north, the EU military mission (EUTM Mali) has more than 600 soldiers from 28 European countries including EU and non-member states.

Its headquarters in Mali's capital Bamako was targeted by militants in 2016, although no personnel were hurt.

The EU agreed in 2014 an additional civilian mission (EUCAP Sahel Mali), sending experts to give advice and training to the internal security forces in Mali, the police, Gendarmerie and National Guard.

EU training will continue in neighboring Niger and Burkina Faso, officials said.