Ukraine Linked to Tuareg Terror Attack

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ukraine is at the center of a diplomatic storm in Africa after its officials appeared to back a recent rebel attack in Mali, which has been plagued by jihadist insurgencies for more than a decade.

 

Tuareg insurgents ambushed a military convoy carrying members of the Russian Wagner Group private military company and Malian soldiers late in July in the village of Tinzaouaten, located in the north of Mali, killing dozens. 

 

Ukrainian military intelligence service (GUR) spokesperson Andrey Yusov (right), speaking on national TV, called the incident a “successful military operation against Russian war criminals” carried out with the “necessary information” provided to the militants by his agents. He vowed that “there will be more to come”. 

 

Kiev’s embassy in Dakar, Senegal shared Yusov’s interview – now deleted – on their Facebook page, along with a caption from their ambassador Yury Pivovarov to Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, and Liberia, who said “there will certainly be other results”.

 

Bamako and its West African neighbors have denounced the remarks as Ukraine’s support for “international terrorism”. Even the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), a regional bloc that Mali’s military government and their allies in Burkina Faso and Niger quit in January, have said they will not tolerate “any foreign interference” that threatens the region’s peace and security. 

 

Senegal and Burkina Faso issued separate statements on Saturday, warning Ukraine against actions aimed at destabilizing their “brotherly” neighbor Mali. Ouagadougou advised Kiev not to “fight the wrong battle and should refrain from any support” for terrorists involved in the ongoing violence in Mali, which has spread to Burkina Faso and Niger.

 

Niger responded on Tuesday by breaking off diplomatic ties with Ukraine with “immediate effect” in “total solidarity with the government and people of Mali”. Mali had earlier taken a similar decision, claiming Kiev’s actions threatened Bamako’s sovereignty.

 

In an interview with RIA Novosti on Wednesday, Fousseinou Ouattara, deputy chairperson of Bamako’s parliamentary security and defense committee, said Mali and Niger have asked the UN Security Council to investigate allegations that Ukraine provided intelligence to the Tuareg rebels. 

 

Ouattara reportedly questioned Ukraine’s ability to act alone in providing intelligence to armed groups, hinting that Kiev’s Western allies, including the US and France, could have assisted.

 

On the same day too, Russia accused Ukraine of encouraging terrorist groups in African countries friendly to Moscow.