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Mali said it had cut diplomatic ties with Ukraine after a military official suggested Kiev played a role in deadly fighting near the Algerian border last month.
Dozens of Malian soldiers and mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner Group have been killed in days of clashes with Tuareg separatist rebels and al-Qaeda-linked fighters.
Andrei Yusov, a spokesman for Ukraine’s military intelligence, said last week that the rebels had obtained the “necessary information” to carry out the attack.
Senior Malian official Colonel Abdoulaye Mayiga said his government was shocked by the claim and accused Ukraine of violating Mali’s sovereignty.
Colonel Mecca’s statement said Yusov’s comments “recognized Ukraine’s involvement in the cowardly, treacherous and brutal attack by an armed terrorist group” that resulted in the death of the Malian soldier.
He said Mali had decided to sever ties with the country “immediately”.
Last week, the Malian army Admitted “significant” losses During the several days of fighting that broke out on July 25th.
The clashes took place in the desert near the northeastern town of Tinzaouaten on the Algerian border.
Malian and Russian forces were reportedly ambushed by Tuareg rebels and fighters from the al-Qaeda affiliate Jamaat-e-Islam while retreating from Tinzaouaten while waiting for reinforcements.
Neither the Malian military nor Wagner (now known as the African Corps) gave exact figures, but estimates put the death toll at between 20 and 80 Wagner fighters.
It is believed to be the heaviest loss of lives suffered by Russian mercenaries in Mali since they began helping the Malian military junta fight rebels two years ago.
Wagner acknowledged that a Russian commander was killed in “fierce fighting” and a Russian helicopter was shot down, and said they were attacked by about 1,000 fighters.
Tuareg-led separatists claimed Thursday they had killed 84 Wagner mercenaries and 47 Malian soldiers.
More than a decade ago, a Tuareg rebellion demanding an independent state led to Mali’s central government losing control of much of the north.
The country’s security situation has been further complicated by the involvement of Islamist militants in the conflict.
When the military seized power in coups in 2020 and 2021, it cited the government’s inability to deal with the unrest.
To quell the unrest, the new military government severed Mali’s long-standing alliance with former colonial power France and allied itself instead with Russia.
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