Russia’s Foreign Ministry spokeswoman on Wednesday, August 7 accused Ukraine of opening a “second front” in Africa after Mali and Niger broke off diplomatic relations with Kyiv.
“Unable to defeat Russia on the battlefield, the criminal regime of Volodymyr Zelensky has opened a second front in Africa,” spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.
Zakharova accused Ukraine of “pandering to terrorist groups in countries on the continent friendly to Moscow.”
Tuareg-led separatists have said they killed 84 fighters from Russia’s Wagner mercenary group and 47 Malian soldiers in an attack last month in northern Mali.
Mali accused a senior Ukrainian official of having admitted Kyiv’s role in the attack and broke off diplomatic relations on August 5.
Mali government spokesman Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga said the government was shocked to learn of remarks by Andriy Yusov, spokesman for Ukraine’s GUR military intelligence agency.
Yusov had “admitted Ukraine’s involvement in a cowardly, treacherous, and barbaric attack by armed terrorist groups” that led to the deaths of Malian soldiers, Maiga said.
Speaking on Ukrainian television, Yusov said the whole world was aware that the rebels “had received the necessary data that allowed them to carry out their operation against the Russian war criminals.”
Niger said Tuesday, August 6 it too was cutting diplomatic ties with Ukraine “with immediate effect.”
Referring to the same attack in Mali, Niger said it would ask the UN Security Council to debate Ukraine’s “aggression,” government spokesman Amadou Abdramane said in a televised statement.
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said Monday that Kyiv “unconditionally adheres to the norms of international law” and “firmly rejects the accusations of the transitional government of Mali,” adding that it regretted Bamako’s “hasty” decision.
Severing Diplomatic Ties Highlights Growing Rift
In recent years, Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso have experienced coups, with their new military governments opting to terminate defense agreements with France and the US, preferring Russian military assistance instead.
As Russia’s influence in Africa continues to grow, Ukraine has been striving to strengthen its own ties on the continent.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba is currently on his fourth visit to Africa in the past two years, with his latest tour including stops in Malawi, Zambia, and Mauritius.
The big question now is whether other West African nations will follow Mali and Niger in cutting ties with Ukraine. All eyes are on Burkina Faso, which formed a bloc with Niger and Mali earlier this year and is also under military rule.
West Africa is not the only region feeling the impact of the Ukraine-Russia war. In Sudan, Wagner is alleged to be supporting the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in its long-standing conflict with the Sudanese army.
Meanwhile, videos circulating widely online purportedly show Ukrainian special forces carrying out drone strikes and other attacks against RSF and Wagner fighters in Sudan.
As the conflict between Russia and Ukraine continues to play out on the African continent, the human cost is becoming ever more apparent.
Over the weekend, more than 70 mourners gathered in Moscow to pay tribute to the Wagner fighters killed in July’s attack.
Red carnations were laid beneath pictures of the fallen fighters at a Sunday memorial, with some attendees lighting candles in their honor.
Niger’s decision to cut diplomatic ties with Ukraine signals a growing rift between some West African states and Kyiv.
As Ukraine seeks to counter Moscow’s expanding influence in Africa, the fallout from these diplomatic ruptures remains to be seen.
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