French commander accuses Wagner of ‘preying’ on Mali

OUAGADOUGOU, 22 July 2022, (TON): The commander of French anti-extremist force Barkhane, General Laurent Michon, accused “mercenaries from Russian group Wagner of preying on Mali.

French-Malian relations started to nosedive after a military coup ousted Mali’s elected president in August 2020.

The junta snubbed French appeals for an early return to civilian rule and then turned to Russian military operatives “mercenaries” from the pro-Kremlin Wagner group, in France’s view to help its anti-extremist fight.

Michon spoke as French forces finalize a withdrawal from Mali, bringing out military equipment via neighboring Niger.

He alleged “the mining code in Mali has changed and now a certain number of measures have been taken to exploit three gold sites for Wagner.”

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