The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine called the decision of the Transitional Government of Mali to sever diplomatic relations with Ukraine "short-sighted and hasty."
The agency stressed that Ukraine adheres to the norms of international law, the inviolability of sovereignty and territorial integrity of other countries and rejects Maliʼs accusation of allegedly "supporting international terrorism."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs recalled that in the 20th century Ukraine, being one of the founders of the UN, actively supported the right of African peoples to independence and decolonization, including the Republic of Mali. Instead, with its war against Ukraine, the Russian Federation is destroying the architecture of international security and violating the goals and principles of the UN Charter.
In addition, the Ukrainian contingent of "blue helmets" made a significant contribution to the implementation of a number of peacekeeping operations under the auspices of the UN, in particular from 2019 to 2022 — as part of the UN Missions in Mali, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs recalled.
The department regrets that the Malian authorities did not conduct a thorough study of the facts and circumstances of the incident in the north of Mali, and did not provide any evidence of Ukraineʼs involvement.
"At the same time, it is ignored that military structures under the control of the Kremlin, in particular ʼWagnerʼ, use terrorist methods and are directly involved in numerous war crimes, murders of civilians and cruel treatment of prisoners of war both in Ukraine and in African countries," they added. the ministry
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs concluded that Ukraine reserves the right to take all necessary measures in response to Maliʼs unfriendly actions.
What preceded
Mali severed diplomatic relations with Ukraine after Tuareg rebels in the north of the country killed dozens of Russian mercenaries of the PMC “Wagner”. The transitional government was outraged by the words of Ukrainian intelligence spokesman Andriy Yusov, which allegedly indicate Ukraineʼs support for this attack.
The government of Mali also agreed with Russiaʼs "assessment" of Ukraineʼs actions, which "warned the world about the neo-Nazi and criminal nature of the Ukrainian government, which is an ally of international terrorism."
The defeat of the mercenaries of the PMC "Wagner" in Mali
On July 28, it became known that the Tuareg rebels killed and wounded dozens of mercenaries of the PMC “Wagner”. Russian propagandists wrote that during the shooting, the author of the famous "Wagner" Telegram channel “Gray Zone” Nikita (with the call sign "Belyi" [“White”] died”.
The commander of the Russian mercenaries in Mali Anton Yelizarov with the call sign "Lotus" also died. He participated in the invasion of Ukraine and led the assaults near Popasna, Severodonetsk, Lysychansk, Vuhlehirsk TPP and Soledar. Before that, he killed people in the Central African Republic (CAR) and Syria. Lotus has the title of Hero of the Russian Federation, as well as "DPR" and "LPR". Both “Lotus” and “White” tortured Ukrainians, something they were very proud of.
Tuareg rebels published an appeal to Ukrainians in Ukrainian on July 28. They expressed solidarity with Ukraine in the fight against Russia and offered to hand over the captured mercenaries of the PMC "Wagner".
The next day, the death of the Wagnerians in Mali was confirmed by the Russian Telegram channel “Razgruzka Wagner”, which is associated with the leadership of the PMC “Wagner”.