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Mali

Civil-Military Relations

commentary
Are Military Coups Back in Style in Africa?
There have been five coups in sub-Saharan Africa since August 2020. On a continent that was recently lauded for its democratic advancement, this backsliding suggests the military coup may be dangerously back in fashion. Why are more coups happening now?
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Dec 1, 2021
Sean M. Zeigler

Mali

commentary
Why the UK May Be Sending Troops to Mali
The UK government's decision to deploy an additional 250 soldiers to join the United Nations mission in Mali might be in Britain's security interests. Such deployments display the UK's commitment to international security and may well form a critical part of its post-BREXIT diplomacy.
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Mar 16, 2020
Michael Shurkin
Mali

commentary
Mali Violence Shows Limits of Intervention
Each year brings more violence to Mali and its neighbors. Mali and Burkina Faso are rapidly destabilizing; the situation in Niger is less dire, but that is hardly a commendation. Why is the violence in Mali getting worse given the significant efforts by the international community to stem it?
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Nov 22, 2019
Michael Shurkin
Counterinsurgency

commentary
Mali Is France's Afghanistan, but with a Difference
At first glance the comparison between the French military operations in Mali and America’s involvement in Afghanistan is compelling, and in some important ways, accurate. It also presents some fundamental differences that give reason for optimism in France.
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Dec 1, 2017
Stephanie Pezard @StephaniePezard, Michael Shurkin
Counterterrorism

commentary
What Is the Sahel G5 Force and Why Should the U.S. Support It?
The French Joint Force G-5 Sahel plan offers the possibility of strengthening the Sahel nations' efforts to combat terrorism. Supporting the French initiative is a worthy undertaking, provided, of course, that everyone understands what it is and is not.
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Nov 6, 2017
Michael Shurkin
Counterterrorism

commentary
Sahel Governments Need More Security Assistance
Developments in the Sahel are cause for alarm. Despite the presence of an active French counterterrorism force and a UN peacekeeping mission, al Qaeda groups are thriving. The region would benefit from approaches that combine police and military operations with economic development and improved governance.
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Sep 14, 2017
Michael Shurkin
Security Cooperation

commentary
The U.S.-France Dustup Over Counterterrorism in the Sahel
It's time for Paris and Washington to get together with the G5 nations of the Sahel and draft a strategy for achieving shared objectives. The French cannot do it alone or even with the support of the G5 nations. The U.S. would be penny wise but pound foolish to stay aloof or even just uphold the status quo.
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Jun 23, 2017
Michael Shurkin
Mali

commentary
What Mali Really Needs
Mali needs more international engagement, as well as serious pressure on the Malian state to strengthen its hold on the country. The key will be helping beyond just security force assistance and conventional economic development aid; Mali needs help governing.
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Jan 23, 2017
Michael Shurkin
Counterterrorism

commentary
Mali's Persistent Jihadist Problem
The 2013 French intervention in Mali averted an al Qaeda-backed thrust toward the capital of Bamako and reduced the threat from other jihadist groups. To ensure that a new threat does not materialize, France will need staying power and support from its allies.
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Jan 12, 2017
Christopher S. Chivvis
Security Cooperation

commentary
Emergencies: France, Mali, and Turkey Are Playing with Fire
The leaders of France, Mali, and Turkey have declared formal states of emergency. France's Hollande and Mali's Keïta, while responding to real threats, are risking democracy. Erdogan appears to be targeting democracy and using Turkey's recent failed coup as a pretext.
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Aug 15, 2016
Michael Shurkin
Military Strategy

commentary
The French Way of War
There is a French way of warfare that reflects the French military's lack of resources and its modest sense of what it can achieve. They specialize in carefully apportioned and usually small but lethal operations, often behind the scenes.
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Nov 17, 2015
Michael Shurkin
Terrorist Organizations

commentary
How to Defeat a New Boko Haram in Mali
While there is a need for stepped up military and police efforts against the self-proclaimed Macina Liberation Front, Mali's policymakers and their international partners need to focus on countering revivalist Islam, ideally by promoting Mali's other Islamic traditions, while finding ways to calm the inter-communal competition.
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Sep 8, 2015
Michael Shurkin
Maternal Health

commentary
Family Planning Must Be Part of the Humanitarian Response in Africa's Conflict Zones
Worldwide, nearly 800 women die every day due to mostly preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth. More than half of these deaths occur in fragile states torn by armed conflict and generalized violence.
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Jul 1, 2015
Mahlet Atakilt Woldetsadik
Counterterrorism

commentary
Help Malians Fight Back
The March 7 terrorist attack that killed five people in a nightclub in Bamako, Mali, underscores the importance of international support for the West African country, which has become another front in the struggle against Islamist radicalism.
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Mar 13, 2015
Stephanie Pezard @StephaniePezard, Michael Shurkin
Mali

commentary
Mali's Peace Accord Offers Little More Than an Opportunity
The good news is that Mali's latest attempt at peace presents a real opportunity. The bad news is that all the reasons that previous agreements failed are still present.
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Mar 11, 2015
Michael Shurkin
France

commentary
Does France Have the Master Plan to Defeat ISIS?
In Mali, France stopped jihadists from taking over, ejected them from the country almost entirely, and struck a major blow to their ability to threaten France and the region. This success story provides important lessons for the U.S. debate about how to deal with ISIS.
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Sep 24, 2014
Christopher S. Chivvis
Counterterrorism

commentary
France Gets Tougher on Terrorism
The launch of Barkhane, a new military operation by France, signals a change. Rather than simply reacting to an emergency as it did in Mali, France is committing to a long-term counterterrorism campaign, a much greater and more public commitment. This is welcome news for the United States.
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Jul 29, 2014
Michael Shurkin
North Atlantic Treaty Organization

commentary
NATO Needs a Southern Strategy
If NATO wants to avoid strategic irrelevance, it needs to give increasing attention to the threats from the Middle East and North Africa region. A southern strategy should draw on recent experience, such as NATO's intervention in Libya and the successful operation in Mali.
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Feb 26, 2014
F. Stephen Larrabee, Peter A. Wilson
Mali

commentary
Remembering What Mali Needs
Free and fair elections are important, to be sure, but what Mali really needs is a leader who is dedicated to democracy, unity and reform of Mali's politics and institutions, write Stephanie Pezard and Michael Shurkin.
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Jul 26, 2013
Stephanie Pezard @StephaniePezard, Michael Shurkin
Counterterrorism

commentary
What Does the Amenas Attack Mean for U.S. Policy in Africa?
Coinciding with continuing, contentious hearings on the U.S. response to last September's terrorist attack in Benghazi, the attack on the Amenas natural gas facility in Algeria has elevated a more general debate about the war on terrorism and U.S. policy in Africa, writes Brian Michael Jenkins.
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Jan 31, 2013
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
Algeria

commentary
The Motivations Behind the Amenas Terrorist Attack
An attack of this complexity would have required months of reconnaissance, planning, recruiting of inside confederates, and training of participants. France's intervention in Mali was used to “justify” an attack that would likely have taken place anyway, writes Brian Michael Jenkins.
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Jan 29, 2013
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
Mali

commentary
Foreign Intervention in Mali Is Libya in Reverse
France is in Mali not just to prop up a failing state in French Africa, but because Mali was becoming a magnet for jihadis from around the world and Paris rightly feared the country could become the next Afghanistan—only much closer to Europe, writes Christopher Chivvis.
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Jan 25, 2013
Christopher S. Chivvis
Terrorism Threat Assessment

q&a
The al Qaeda Threat in North Africa
Last week's terrorist attack at the In Amenas gas complex in Algeria, along with the recent success of the militant groups fighting government forces in Mali, indicate al Qaeda and other terrorist groups are gaining influence in North Africa. RAND experts weigh in on the latest developments.
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Jan 24, 2013
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins, Michael Shurkin, et al.
Algeria

commentary
Hostage Taking Exposes Terror Threat in Africa
There is a danger in viewing Mali through the prism of counter-terrorism, since the rebel element there is tangled up in movements and groups with a wide variety of interests and motives, ranging from sincere religious conviction to local political rivalries to base economic opportunism, writes Michael Shurkin.
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Jan 18, 2013
Michael Shurkin
France

commentary
The French Intervention in Mali Is Necessary, but Risky
No solution is likely to offer more than a short-term reprise if it is not accompanied by real progress toward resolving Mali's political crisis and strengthening the Malian state and Malian democracy, write Stephanie Pezard and Michael Shurkin.
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Jan 17, 2013
Stephanie Pezard @StephaniePezard, Michael Shurkin
France

commentary
France Needs More Than Force in Mali
France should coordinate military action with efforts to engage with local factions to use as partners and proxies, write Stephanie Pezard and Michael Shurkin. This is, in effect, how France conquered and secured northern Mali in the first place a century ago.
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Jan 17, 2013
Stephanie Pezard @StephaniePezard, Michael Shurkin
Mali

blog
Unrest in Mali Leaves Opening for Radicalism
African leaders meeting in Paris on Wednesday reportedly agreed that an African-led operation is needed to keep the western part of the continent, including Mali, from becoming overtaken by terrorists, including al Qaeda affiliates.
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Dec 6, 2012