Statement
Statement summary
ABDOULAYE MAIGA, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of State, Minister for Territorial Administration and Decentralization of Mali, said that, due to terrorist groups and armed groups, his country since 2012 has faced a crisis that has led to the loss of more than half of its territory and many innocent deaths. The allegiance to Al-Qaida of the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat, the Algerian GSPC, in September 2006, exacerbated by the reckless intervention of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Libya in 2011 worsened insecurity in Mali, he added, pointing to trafficking of all kinds, money-laundering and “community conflicts manipulated by terrorists and their foreign State sponsors”. The Malian authorities, having noted the failure of the international forces in Mali territory since 2013, launched in 2021 — after the swearing in of Colonel Assimi Goïta, as President of the Transition and Head of State — a vast campaign to equip and reorganize the Defence and Security Forces, as well as a national programme for education on values to enable to the country to “return to our origins” in its legitimate quest for sovereignty, he said.
He detailed achievements in Mali’s political transition, including the adoption of its new Constitution in July 2023. Noting the holding in December 2023 of the Inter-Malian Dialogue for Peace and Reconciliation, he reiterated his Government’s appeal to all Malians to join in the process of reconciliation. Spotlighting Malian Defence and Security Forces’ offensive, he said all regions have been recaptured from terrorist groups, including the Kidal region in November 2023. Terrorist groups have been severely weakened, and the Defence and Security Forces have been deployed throughout the territory and are also continuing to dismantle remaining terrorist networks. Recognizing the limits of a security-based-only response, he said the Government has adopted a comprehensive, integrated strategy aimed at restoring State authority, with political, economic and social development measures, including dialogue with armed groups and the provision of basic social services.
Nonetheless, criminal groups still attempt to undermine Mali’s territorial integrity and terrorize its populations, he said, denouncing foreign State sponsors’ support of those groups. He recalled that, earlier this year, the member States of the Confederation of the States of the Sahel sent a joint letter to the Security Council to condemn Ukrainian authorities' support for international terrorism; denounce the aggression against Mali; and demand that the Council take appropriate measures against the Ukrainian Government. He also criticized France for its acts of aggression against Mali and its involvement in promoting terrorism in the Sahel through armed, economic and media terrorism. He expressed surprise at the fierce hostility from some officials of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) “who are acting on orders of imperialists and neocolonial entities”. The Confederation of States of the Sahel is open to all investors, provided that the partnership benefits the Sahelian populations and State sovereignty is respected. He commended the Russian Federation, China, Türkiye, Iran and many other of Mali's allies for their cooperation.
The Deputy Prime Minister of Mali outlined on Saturday the steps the Government has taken to rebuild trust among the country’s diverse communities and push back against terrorism, but he warned that “opportunistic’ terrorist groups, and their foreign sponsors threatened to undo this work.
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Addressing the UN General Assembly’s annual debate, Abdoulaye Maiga said that since 2012, Mali had been experiencing a multifaceted crisis that led to the loss of more than half its territory and countless civilian lives.
This was largely due to violence perpetrated by an “opportunistic and incestuous association” of terrorist groups and other armed fighters. NATO’s “haphazard” military intervention in Libya had also played a part in worsening the situation throughout the Sahel.
Indeed, terrorist activities, instigated by sponsors inside and outside the region, had a dire impact on Mali’s security and stability due to rising violence, “all kinds of trafficking, money laundering and community conflicts,” the Deputy Prime Minister explained.
Having witnessed the failure of international forces on its territory since 2013 to deal with these issues, Malian authorities decided to “take their fate in their own hands.” Since 2021 Mali had launched a vast campaign to re-equip and reorganize the Malian defense and security forces.
After a subsequent national assessment, Malian authorities and citizens had together concluded that their country, its people and its defense and security forces had been “left pillaged and polluted; battered and humiliated; high and dry and stabbed in the back,” by parties that had instigated violence, and looted the country’s raw materials for their own gain. Such was the case for much of Africa.
Considering this “ruthless reality of international relations”, especially as it pertains to Africa, Mali’s president had earlier this year launched a ‘national programme for education on values’ aiming for Malians to recommit to their origins, “without which it would be difficult to image a bright future for our country in its legitimate quest to restore its sovereignty,” Mr. Maiga explained.
As for Mali’s ongoing political transition, he recalled that the Malian people had chosen to undertake political reforms before holding elections to establish good governance, among other goals. In addition, to further foster national unity, “which is the basis for all development efforts”, the president, on 31 December 2023, the holding of the three phase inter-Malian dialogue for peace and reconciliation. The aim is to allow the nation to seek Malian solutions for the prevention, management and resolution of conflicts.
“We call on all Malians to support this trend towards reconciliation, a key step towards returning to constitutional order,” Mr. Maiga said, going on to note that while the outcomes of the reconciliation process were still a guiding principle, the newly reinvigorated security forces had been successful in, among others, efforts to recover all regions form the hands of terrorist groups, particularly in Kidal.
Even though the terrorist groups had been “severely weakened” as Malian defense forces have been deployed throughout the country, those “criminals” continued “desperate attempts to undermine Mali’s territorial integrity, he said, denouncing the support of such actors by “foreign State sponsors”.
Mr. Maiga also recalled that, earlier this year, the member States of the Confederation of the States of the Sahel sent a joint letter to the Security Council to condemn Ukrainian authorities' support for international terrorism; denounce the aggression against Mali; and demand that the Council take appropriate measures against the Ukrainian Government.
He also criticized France for its acts of aggression against Mali and its involvement in promoting terrorism in the Sahel through armed, economic and media terrorism.
Finally, the Deputy Foreign Minister expressed surprise at the “fierce hostility” from some officials of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) “who are acting on orders of imperialists and neocolonial entities”.
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