Mali: Failed Coup D’éTat Thanks to Wagner Group

According to Monday's announcement by the Government of Mali, a group of local military, foreign mercenaries, and units from North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) member countries attempted to stage a coup d'état in the country through a communiqué on May 12.

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Several reports surfaced that the attack was thwarted thanks to the forces of Wagner's fighters stationed in the African country. The note also indicates that those involved in the coup have been arrested and will be tried. On condition of anonymity, a military official reported that the number of people arrested had risen to about ten and that efforts are underway to find others involved in the coup.

As the text reads, security measures in Bamako, the capital of Mali, and the country's borders, have been tightened and the situation is now under control. The Government of the Republic of Mali has called for the immediate withdrawal of foreign forces that are sent "without its permission" to the African country.

In turn, the spokesman of the Ministry of Administration and Decentralization of Mali, Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga, stressed that a Western state supported this coup d'état without giving further details.

The accusing finger has been pointed at France, which, supported by NATO, deployed forces in 2013 in five African Sahel countries (Mali, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, Niger, and Chad) under the pretext of fighting terrorism, but in reality seeks, according to public opinion, its own interests in African nations rich in natural resources.

This comes as thousands of people demonstrated on Friday in Bamako to call for the expulsion of the French mission forces and in support of Russian aid, displaying slogans such as "Thank you, Russia and Putin" or "Occupying armies, out of Mali."

The Malian government maintains tensions with France and turns to Russia for defense material. Despite the presence of the French military in five Sahel countries, extremists continue their attacks in these African nations.