The Bundeswehr more engaged in Mali? Not immediately. AKK discards
(B2) For German Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, a possible extension of the Bundeswehr mission in Mali will be discussed only in the context of the extension of mandates in the spring of the year next. This means that participation in Operation Takuba in France, training and escorting Malian special forces, might not be on the agenda at the moment.
A participation in Takuba not before next April?
During a visit to the 1st Parachute Brigade (LLBrig 1) in Saarlouis on Monday (November 25), the minister answered questions from journalists. As usual, she stressed how the fight against terrorism in the Sahel zone should not be left to French troops alone. However, she refused to commit further. A discussion on this subject would, according to her, only make sense in the context of the extension of the mandates of the United Nations mission MINUSMA and the EU training mission in Mali (EUTM Mali). The Bundestag last extended both terms in May this year. It is therefore unlikely to be reviewed before the government's decision in April 2020, according to our colleague Thomas Wiegold.
No detailed request from France
Shortly before, during her visit to the region in October, the minister had already made it clear that Germany and the Bundeswehr were supposed to engage more in the Sahel zone. But without really a concrete follow-up. But, according to her, France has only generally expressed the wish to give a broader base to the fight against terrorism in the region. Berlin would thus not have received a specific request from France for more German participation. A rather loose way to discard gently...
(NGV, with T. Wiegold, in Berlin - Augergeradeaus)
