Denmark will be closing its embassies in Mali and Burkina Faso after experiencing a series of military coups over the past few years, according to the Danish foreign ministry on Monday. This development is coming after it officially launched a new strategy for its cooperation with the African continent.
Mali which has been under the control of a military junta since 2020 has been fighting ethnic Tuareg rebels in its north together with Russia’s Wagner mercenary group after it cut [military cooperation] ties with Western powers European Union countries included.
Since then, the relations between Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso and Western powers have declined and grown cold as the three look to Russia for support.
The resentment over the authorities’ failure to restore security have led to coups in Mali and Burkina Faso, which the Danish foreign ministry have said created little to no room for maneuver in the Sahel region.
At the time of filing this report, Mali’s ministry of foreign affairs had yet to make a request for comment.
However, the Danish ministry have said that it would open embassies in Rwanda, Senegal and Tunisia, and increase its diplomatic workforce in its embassies to Egypt, Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria and Ghana.
What They’re Saying
“One of the most important foreign policy questions of this century will be whether African countries will orient themselves more towards the East or the West,” the Danish foreign ministry said in a statement.
“We have a clear interest in African countries looking to us in Europe to set the course for their future,” it added.
