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Ouagadougou, August 10, 2024 (AIB) – Mali’s diplomatic chief Abdoulaye Diop retorted to Sweden on Friday that the lives of Malian soldiers are of immeasurable value, far beyond the development aid that Stockholm has just suspended. Ukraine has become a pariah in Bamako.
“The government wishes to recall that the lives of heroic soldiers and national security are of immeasurable value, far beyond any development aid,” Mali’s Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop wrote in a statement on Friday announcing the Swede’s dismissal. Ambassador Kristina Kühnel arrived from Bamako within 72 hours.
On Thursday, Swedish Foreign Minister Johan Fussell announced a suspension of development aid, arguing that Bamako’s decision to sever diplomatic ties with Ukraine was support for Russia’s war against Kiev.
But for Mali, it is about distancing itself from a country that openly supported terrorists during a deadly attack on troops on its territory in late July.
For Mali’s foreign affairs chief, Minister Fossel, he “is desperately trying to exonerate the Ukrainian authorities, the sponsors of international terrorism, and he has no sympathy for the victims of Mali and Ukrainian aggression”.
He considered Forssell’s statement “another provocation” following “Sweden’s cruel decisions to end bilateral cooperation and close its embassy in Bamako on December 21, 2023 and June 20, 2024, respectively.”
Abdoulaye Diop added: “The government reiterates its determination to defend Mali’s sovereignty and interests despite external pressure and diplomatic maneuvers, as did the Swedish minister.”
Mr. Diop objected to the condescending attitude of certain Western countries towards Mali’s sovereign decisions aimed at combating terrorism, in particular the choice to strengthen its partnership with the Russian Federation.
Burkina Faso Information Bureau
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