Russia: We will not leave Mali... Continued support for the government in the fight against terrorism

Written by: Qusay Ahmed 

The Kremlin announced on Thursday that Russian forces will continue their presence in Mali in support of the government in its fight against armed groups, primarily the al-Qaeda-linked Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) group.

Moscow confirms its continued military presence in Mali

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that the continued Russian presence is in response to a request from the Malian government, stressing that Moscow will continue its efforts to combat extremism and terrorism and provide military and advisory support to the existing authorities.

This stance comes in the wake of coordinated attacks in Mali over the weekend that killed the defense minister and prompted Russian military contractors to withdraw from a strategic city, a development that reflects the scale of the challenges facing the ruling military council in extending its control over the entire territory.

According to field reports, these attacks came as part of escalating moves by an alliance that includes groups linked to al-Qaeda and Tuareg separatists, which led to a redrawing of the map of influence in several areas, and opened the door to the possibility of new field gains for the armed groups, which also intensified their activity in neighboring countries.

In a related context, the group Ansar al-Islam wal-Muslimin broadcast a video recording in which it announced its control over a military base in the Hombori region in the center of the country, in addition to two checkpoints near the capital Bamako, which was verified by Reuters through matching the footage with satellite and archive images.

The group also threatened to impose a complete siege on the capital, which is home to about 4 million people, a move that could complicate the humanitarian and security situation, especially given the population's reliance on private generators for electricity.

For their part, analysts warned that any potential siege of Bamako could push the Malian army to focus its efforts on securing the capital, at the expense of other areas, which could give armed groups an opportunity to strengthen their influence.

In a parallel development, the Malian army announced it had carried out airstrikes in the city of Kidal, which was recently recaptured by Tuareg separatists, after having been under government control since 2023 with Russian support.