Blue Helmets
Baerbock calls for a clear withdrawal mandate for the UN mission in Mali
According to Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock (Greens), the federal government is committed to an orderly withdrawal from Mali. photo
© Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa
The mandate of the UN peacekeeping mission Minusma in Mali is expiring. How things will continue in the West African country is still unclear. The Bundeswehr is also massively affected.
Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has a clear withdrawal mandate for the imminent end of the UN peacekeeping mission Minusma in West Africa Mali demands. “A withdrawal mandate that focuses on the security of the people and the security of the soldiers” is very important, said the Green politician after a meeting with her Mongolian colleague Batmunkh Battsetseg in the Mongolian capital Ulan Bator. The federal government is working in the UN Security Council in New York for an orderly withdrawal.
The mandate of the UN mission to stabilize Mali (Minusma), which has existed since 2013, expires today. It is expected that the UN Security Council will soon vote on the withdrawal of the UN blue helmets. According to dpa information, a draft resolution provided for an end to the UN peacekeeping mission, in which the Bundeswehr is involved, after a transitional period of six months at the end of the year. According to the draft, the blue helmets should only be active to a limited extent during this time. Mali’s military government had demanded the withdrawal of all 12,000 UN peacekeepers in mid-June.
Baerbock with Pistorius in exchange
Baerbock recalled that the federal government, together with its international partners and Mali’s direct neighbors, had campaigned last year “that we can maintain this mission, which is so important for the people of Mali”. She added: “Unfortunately, the military government made a different decision, which is why the international community must now withdraw.”
The Federal Foreign Minister said that there was an exchange with France on the fact that the safety of the people and the safety of the international peacekeepers on site should have top priority. “But as is well known, other actors in the Security Council also have a say,” she emphasized, without naming Russia and China. She was in exchange with Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) “how we can then organize our retreat in an orderly manner in view of this changed situation”.
Wagner troops active in Mali – “human rights violations”
With regard to the use of the Russian mercenary group Wagner in Mali, Baerbock said: “We know that there have been human rights violations.” The use of mercenary groups that do not act on the understanding of peace missions is an enormous threat to the local people. “That’s why it was so important for us to maintain our international presence. But you can’t do that against the will of a country,” emphasized the Federal Foreign Minister. For the “local people, it is a great drama that this military government has turned against the safety of its own people”.
According to the official translation, Mongolian Foreign Minister Battsetseg said that her country had two powerful neighbors, Russia and China, and that the dependency was huge. Mongolia is working to reduce this dependency. We take the current situation very seriously. They are counting on the fact that the escalation can be resolved through negotiations.
Dispute with Mali’s military government
For peacekeeping missions, the United Nations depend on the consent of the respective country. The Security Council decision must be approved by 9 of the 15 Security Council members, with the USA, China, Russia, France and Great Britain not being able to vote against it. Germany, which has already decided to end participation in the mission, wanted to withdraw its soldiers by May 31, 2024 according to previous plans, after an increasing dispute with Mali’s military government about flight rights for surveillance drones.
The UN mission has been active in the country on the edge of the Sahara desert since Islamist militias overran the north of the country in 2012. They are now also terrorizing the center of the Sahel state and its neighboring countries. After two military coups in 2020/21, Mali is now seeking cooperation with Russia. The Russian mercenary force Wagner is said to be in Mali with up to 2,000 fighters, although Colonel Assimi Goïta’s junta officially only speaks of trainers.