Le Monde: There is no longer any doubt. Its vanguards have reached Timbuktu.. Wagner mercenaries are deployed in central Mali.

The French newspaper "Le Monde" said that there is no longer any doubt about the spread of Russian mercenaries belonging to the private Wagner company in Mali, specifically in the center of the country, but the status of this unit is still ambiguous, because Moscow has not given any information, while the The financial authorities continue to deny the conclusion of any contract with the Wagner Group so far.

The newspaper confirmed - in a joint report between Cyril Bensimon and Elise Vincent - that the number of paramilitary forces and Russian soldiers in Mali was estimated before Christmas at 40 individuals stationed at an air base near the airport in the capital, Bamako, but this number may now reach between 300 and 350 men who have advanced to Timbuktu. , according to several French and local sources.

Because of the explosion of an explosive device while a car was passing, followed by a clash with jihadists, the presence of these paramilitary elements in the center of the country was exposed, and this attack took place on January 3, south of Mopti.

And it caused several deaths on the jihadi side and wounded at least one on the part of the Wagner group, before the death toll rose to one dead and two wounded among Wagner, according to the newspaper's information.

Coexistence with international forces

Sources told the newspaper that the increasing strength associated with the Wagner Group in Mali is certain, and that, as they did in the Central African Republic, they are providing combat support to the Malian armed forces, and confirmed that between 300 and 350 Russian-speakers have been identified, and that 200 of them are present in Ségou, Mopti and Sevare, As well as a few dozen men in Timbuktu, where the blue berets of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA) are located, directly raises the problem of the coexistence of these two international powers with different objectives, principles and rules of engagement.

The sources explained to Le Monde that the men of the Wagner Group and the supposed Russian trainers of the Malian armed forces had arrived in Mali in small numbers since mid-December by air, but they did not pass through the usual border controls at Bamako airport and were secretly disembarked at the end of the runway, and then transported by land Gradually to central Mali, despite official denials by the Malian authorities.

Although the presence of the Wagner Group and the Russian trainers was noticed in December 2021, first in Bamako and then in Nara and Sikasso, it was proven that their vanguards moved towards the center of the country most exposed to fighting and most exposed to the eyes of observers, and therefore the clash occurred between them and the jihadists in the heart of the Dogon state In which the Macina Brigade - affiliated with the Al-Qaeda-linked Ansar Dine group - maintains control of areas outside the cities, which means that deploying Wagner men there is not easy.

 anger line

Le Monde wondered: Is the military group that seized power in Mali seeking to regain control of the lands that fell out of the state's grip, at a time when external and internal pressures are mounting?

She said that if this group succeeds in gaining local popularity through appropriate trials against figures from the previous regimes, it wants to postpone the presidential elections scheduled for the end of February 2022 to a far date in January 2026, and most political parties in Mali have rejected this. The clear intention to retain power, and the countries of the region and international organizations are disturbed and worried about the deteriorating situation in Mali, which affects its neighbors.

The newspaper said that attention now turns to the summit of the Economic Community of West African States, which will be held today, Sunday, after envoys of the Malian transitional government toured the capitals of the region to present their new assessment of matters, but a "line of anger" is forming between the heads of West African countries, according to a source. A Frenchman says that "those who were more reluctant to tighten sanctions, such as Togos, became aware of the danger of their reasoning."

The newspaper pointed out that the organization, after announcing the travel ban on many members of the current financial power, could impose a blockade on the borders and request the freezing of financial accounts in the Central Bank of West African States, but these measures are extreme and could lead to the collapse of the fragile financial economy and pay part of the Population to national reactions.

However, "everyone within ECOWAS is angry with the Malian authorities, and it is time to remind Malians that they are locking themselves in a dangerous logic," a foreign observer in Bamako warned.

The newspaper concluded that the progress of the Wagner Group in Mali poses a problem in France, although the Russian and French forces do not coexist in theory, as about 300 to 400 kilometers separate Timbuktu and Mopti on the one hand, and Gao, where the main “Barkhane” base is located, but the army The French also provide combat support to the Malian army, and this is a paradoxical situation.