Russian military advisers have arrived in Mali in recent weeks, African state army officials said on Friday that tensions persisted between Bamako and the West over the involvement of Russian mercenaries in Mali.
Around 400 Russian military personnel could operate in Mali, said a Malian army officer who wanted to remain anonymous.
Another officer, who also did not want his name to appear in the media, said Russian advisers were in “several parts of Mali.”
Russia’s presence raises suspicions that the Malian government has hired mercenaries from Russia’s private military company Vagner.
In a statement in late December, 15 Western countries condemned the deployment of Vagner fighters in Mali and accused Moscow of providing material support to mercenaries.
However, the Malian government denied the deployment of mercenaries in Mali, explaining that “Russian instructors” in Mali would strengthen the operational capabilities of the security forces.
A Western security official, an African diplomat in the capital, Bamako, and an elected official in Mali, who all wanted to remain anonymous, told Mali that Mali was now a Russian employee.
A Western security official, for example, said “several hundred Russian mercenaries” from Vagner were stationed in central Mali and north.
However, one Malian army officer insisted that only Russian military advisers be deployed.
“You’re talking about mercenaries, it’s your job. They’re Russian advisers to us,” the officer said.
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