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Niger said the move was in solidarity with Mali, which accuses Kiev of supporting rebels involved in the deadly attack
Niger has severed diplomatic ties with Ukraine in protest against Kiev’s alleged support for militants who killed dozens of Malian soldiers and Russian Wagner Group contractors in attacks last month.
Ukraine’s decision on Tuesday came just two days after Mali did the same, accusing Kiev of supporting international terrorism after Ukrainian officials said Kiev had aided Tuareg rebels in an attack in the village of Tinzavaten.
After the incident, Ukrainian intelligence spokesman Andrei Yusov said in an interview on state television that the rebels had received intelligence that they would “carry out a successful military operation against Russian war criminals.” He warned that “there will be more.” The Ukrainian Embassy in Senegal posted the video on its Facebook page (now deleted) with a comment from Ambassador Yuri Pivovarov, who said, “There will definitely be other results.”
Speaking on state television late Tuesday, Amadou Abdramane, a spokesman for Niger’s US military administration, called the comments “disrespectful” and “unacceptable” and claimed they were “an act of aggression.”
“Niger stands in full solidarity with the government and people of Mali and has decided to immediately sever diplomatic relations between the Republic of Niger and Ukraine,” Abderaman said.
Kiev has yet to respond to the African country’s move.
On Monday, Ukraine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs deny any involvement in terrorist attacks, and called Mali’s decision to sever diplomatic ties “short-sighted and hasty.”
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said: “Ukraine is seen in Africa as an important contributor to ensuring regional security,” adding that the Bamako operation did not provide any evidence of Kiev’s involvement in the ambush near the Algerian border.
On Tuesday, West African regional bloc ECOWAS condemned the killings in Mali and expressed its “strong” opposition to “any foreign interference” that threatens peace and security in the region.
Bamako’s neighbors, including Senegal and Burkina Faso, criticized the Ukrainian officials’ remarks.
Mali has been mired in a jihadist insurgency that has killed thousands since 2012. A decade-long French military operation has failed to quell the violence, and the conflict has spread to neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger. The three former French colonies, led by their armies, have severed defense ties with Paris and formed the Alliance of Sahel States to fight terrorism.
Bamako, Niamey and Ouagadougou consider Russia a strategic security ally, and Russia has agreed to assist the troubled Sahel countries in combating the long-standing terrorist threat.
（RT.com）
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