Kiev is aiding jihadists and separatist rebels that have joined forces against Bamako, the African country\u2019s foreign minister has said<\/p>\n
Mali has taken its case against Ukraine to the UN again, two years after severing diplomatic ties with Kiev over a rebel ambush that killed dozens of Malian soldiers and allied Russian forces.\u00a0
\nMalian Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop told the UN General Assembly on Monday that Ukraine was aiding armed groups in the Sahel and urged the international community to respond.
\nWhy has Mali raised the accusation again?
\nDiop\u2019s remarks follow a series of coordinated militant raids in Mali and new reports of Ukrainian assistance with drone operations. Pointing to attacks on April 25 and July 4, he said they exposed a \u201cdangerous connection\u201d between jihadists and separatist rebels, and accused Kiev of aiding forces that threaten his country\u2019s territorial integrity.
\n\u201cUkraine is just the visible part of the iceberg,\u201d he said, claiming the violence was part of a wider effort to destabilize the Sahel states and obstruct their break with former colonial influence.
\nThe April offensive by the Al-Qaeda-linked Jama\u2019at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) and the Tuareg-led Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) struck several cities and killed Malian Defense Minister Sadio Camara. Mali\u2019s army said it repelled assaults on military sites and key infrastructure with support from Russia\u2019s Africa Corps, killing more than 200 militants.\u00a0<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Mali hit by wave of coordinated terrorist raids<\/p>\n
Malian Prime Minister Abdoulaye Maiga described the offensive as an attempt to seize power. The Russian Defense Ministry acknowledged the assault, saying it amounted to an attempted coup and claimed that the attackers had received training involving Ukrainian and European mercenary instructors.\u00a0
\nHow did the dispute with Ukraine begin?
\nIn July 2024, Tuareg rebels ambushed Malian troops and Wagner Group contractors near Tinzaouaten, close to the Algerian border. Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman Andrey Yusov later said the rebels had received \u201cnecessary information\u201d that enabled the operation, adding that \u201cthere will be a continuation.\u201d
\nYuriy Pyvovarov, then Ukraine\u2019s ambassador to Senegal, shared Yusov\u2019s interview on Facebook, writing, \u201cThe work will continue. There will certainly be other results.\u201d Senegal summoned him over the post, while Mali cited the remarks as evidence of Kiev\u2019s involvement, and severed diplomatic ties.
\nWhat has been reported about Ukrainian involvement since then?
\nLe Monde reported in 2024 that Ukrainian intelligence had taught Tuareg rebels to build and operate explosive drones, citing sources close to the group. This month, CNN interviewed Ukrainian personnel who said about 15 specialists were assisting the FLA with unmanned aircraft. One described remotely directing rebel drone missions.<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Ukrainian terrorism goes global. Where now?<\/p>\n
Fousseynou Ouattara, vice president of the defense commission of Mali\u2019s transitional council, told TASS in July that authorities had identified fighters who had received drone training in Ukraine. Malian outlet Bamada also reported that soldiers recovered a drone bearing Ukrainian writing and documents allegedly linked to Ukrainian intelligence during operations against JNIM.
\nWhat has Ukraine said?
\nUkraine\u2019s Foreign Ministry has rejected the Sahel states\u2019 terrorism allegations, describing them as \u201cgroundless and untrue\u201d and calling Mali\u2019s decision to sever ties \u201chasty.\u201d In August 2024, it said Bamako had provided no evidence of Ukrainian involvement in the Tinzaouaten attack. Ukraine\u2019s military intelligence agency also referred CNN to earlier official remarks when approached for comment on its September report of Ukrainian drone specialists assisting rebels in Mali.\u00a0
\nIs Mali alone in making the accusation?
\nNiger and Burkina Faso have also accused Ukraine of supporting armed groups. The three Alliance of Sahel States (AES) members filed a complaint with the UN Security Council in August 2024.
\nDuring a televised interview on Sunday reviewing his four years in office, Burkina Faso\u2019s interim President Ibrahim Traore said he had placed Ukraine on his country\u2019s \u201cmap of enemies.\u201d Speaking about what he described as attempts to destabilize Mali and Niger, he warned these were \u201conly the beginning.\u201d He cited Pyvovarov\u2019s comment, saying the diplomat had \u201cclearly stated that they were involved\u201d in supporting armed groups in the Sahel.
\nWhat does Moscow say?
\nRussia backs the Sahel states\u2019 accusations. Last month, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov accused Kiev of \u201cstate terrorism\u201d against countries in the region, citing reports of serving Ukrainian troops joining attacks alongside armed groups. Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova previously said Kiev was opening a \u201csecond front\u201d against Russia in Africa by supporting militants in countries friendly to Moscow.
\nRussian Deputy Foreign Minister Georgy Borisenko told TASS on July 17 that Ukrainian instructors trained in drone warfare were embedded with Islamist militants in Mali. He also alleged Ukrainian involvement in attacks on Russian interests in Libya and support for paramilitary forces in Sudan, extending Moscow\u2019s accusations beyond the Sahel.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Read more<\/p>\n
Kiev using Africa as \u2018second front\u2019 against Russia \u2013 deputy FM<\/p>\n
Why have the Sahel states turned to Russia?
\nMali, Niger and Burkina Faso ended defense ties with France, accusing it of failing to contain the insurgency and interfering in their affairs. They have strengthened counterterrorism cooperation with Russia.
\nNearly 49,000 people have been killed in violence linked to militant Islamist groups in the Sahel since 2022, the Africa Center for Strategic Studies said in August.
\nMali and Russia signed a military cooperation agreement in June 2019. Bamako sought Russian private military assistance in 2021. Wagner was replaced by Russia\u2019s Defense Ministry-run Africa Corps in June 2025. The corps operates at African governments\u2019 official request, Lavrov said last month.
\nAt the UN on Monday, Diop said the AES remained open to partnerships respecting its members\u2019 sovereignty. \u201cWe do not accept dictates; rather, we seek sincere and healthy cooperation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Kiev is aiding jihadists and separatist rebels that have joined forces against Bamako, the African country\u2019s foreign minister has said Mali has taken its case against Ukraine to the UN…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":39126,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39125","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t