BAMAKO, Mali
Mali's military government on Monday called on Denmark to "immediately" withdraw its roughly 100 recently arrived special forces troops deployed in the troubled Sahel country.
The
junta, which came to power in a coup in August 2020, said in a statement on
state TV and published on social media that "this deployment was undertaken
without consent".
"The
government of Mali notes with astonishment, the deployment on its territory of
a contingent of Danish special forces within the Takuba force," the
government said in a statement.
"The
government underlines that this deployment took place without its consent, and
without consideration of the additional protocol applicable to European
partners who take part in the framework of the Takuba Task Force," it
said,
The
contingent of around 90 Danish soldiers arrived in Mali to join European
special forces supporting the country's anti-jihadist operations earlier this
month, Denmark's military said at the time.
The
force, whose deployment was announced in April 2021, is stationed in Menaka in
eastern Mali. Its mandate was due to run until early 2023.
Denmark
has previously sent troops to participate in military interventions in Mali,
some with the UN's MINUSMA peacekeeping force and others with the French-led
Operation Barkhane.
The
new contingent had been due to join Task Force Takuba -- a 900-troop French-led
unit launched in March 2020.
Other
contributors are the Netherlands, Estonia, Sweden, Norway, Belgium, the Czech
Republic, Portugal, Italy and Hungary.
European
countries have raised concern over the deployment of mercenaries from Russia's
Wagner group on Malian soil and Mali's delayed return to civilian rule after
the coup.
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