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6d ago

U.S. Recasts Sahel Policy as Top Africa Envoy Visits Mali to Reset Ties

Analysts tie the move to counterterrorism urgency alongside a push for critical minerals access.

The leader of Mali's ruling junta, Lt. Col. Assimi Goita, centre , attends an independence day military parade in Bamako, Mali, on Sept. 22, 2022.
Mali’s interim president and junta leader, Assimi Goita, arrives at the Beijing International Airport in China, Sept. 1, 2024 (Ken Ishii/Pool Photo via AP).
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Overview

  • Nick Checker met Mali’s foreign minister in Bamako, pledged respect for sovereignty, and signaled plans to engage Burkina Faso and Niger on security and economic ties.
  • AFRICOM has floated targeted, limited intelligence-sharing with the junta-led states, and its commander said the U.S. stands ready to work with willing partners against jihadist groups.
  • Islamist violence is escalating, including an Islamic State–claimed attack on Niamey’s airport in January and a JNIM assault on a fuel convoy in Mali that threatened supplies to Bamako.
  • Russia has expanded its footprint through Africa Corps support to the juntas, with Moscow claiming its forces helped Niger repel the airport attackers as the AES bloc distances itself from Western partners.
  • Observers describe a transactional thaw linked to mineral access, while a Malian diplomat said potential U.S. involvement was discussed with conditions such as a return to constitutional order and ending the Africa Corps contract.