Mali’s ruling junta has opted to cancel planned festivities marking the country’s independence day. The decision comes in response to mounting tensions in the northern regions of the nation, where security concerns have been escalating.
Addressing the nation in a speech on Thursday, Assimi Goïta, the head of Mali’s junta, assured the populace that the nation’s defence and security forces would be redeployed across the country in response to the prevailing challenges.
Goïta articulated, “After ten years of the presence of foreign forces on our soil, we understood that the logic was rather to maintain insecurity and keep us dependent. This is the fundamental reason why the Malian people have decided to take their security into their own hands.”
Mali has experienced a decade-long presence of foreign troops, yet large swathes of territory remain beyond the control of the national authorities. Notably, the Malian military is placing its hopes on Russia’s assistance to help re-establish sovereignty, despite significant portions of the nation being outside its jurisdiction.
During his address, Assimi Goïta took the opportunity to express gratitude to Mali’s supporters, with special acknowledgment given to the Russian Federation. He stated, “I would like, on this occasion, to salute Mali’s sincere partners, in particular the Russian Federation, whose efforts and support have been extremely useful to us in preserving our sovereignty in a national, regional and international context marked by multi-faceted tensions against a backdrop of divergent views”.
In recent developments, Tuareg-dominated groups in northern Mali resumed operations against the Malian army in September. This resurgence of hostilities followed months of tensions between these groups and the government. It is worth noting that they had previously signed a peace agreement with the central government in 2015, aimed at quelling hostilities triggered by the independence and Salafist insurrections of 2012.
Mali’s decision to cancel Independence Day celebrations underscores the gravity of the security situation in the country. The evolving situation in Mali remains a subject of regional and global concern as efforts are made to restore stability and peace to the nation.
