Ukraine's anti-Russian forces extend to Africa. Mali rebels are exposed to the inside story of being trained by Ukrainian drones

Ukraine has vowed to fight Russia wherever it can, even in the "scorching desert" of Africa's Sahel region. Agence France-Presse reported on the 9th that there are signs that Kiev is supporting Mali’s Tuareg separatist forces in fighting against Mali’s military government forces and its Russian allies.

Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso are all ruled by military governments that have distanced themselves from their former colonial master France and become closer to Russia. The three countries accused Ukraine of supplying weapons to the "Front for the Liberation of Azawad" (FLA) and severed diplomatic relations with Ukraine. The FLA is mainly Tuareg and has a loose alliance with the Sahel branch of the Al-Qaeda group, the JNIM.

In September, Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop accused Ukraine of "supporting terrorist organizations in Africa and the Sahel region and undermining Mali's territorial integrity." Niger's Prime Minister Ali Mahamane Lamine Zeine accused Ukraine and France of instructing "proxy forces" to attack military strongholds and oil facilities. Ukraine's foreign ministry has not yet responded to AFP's inquiries about the allegations.

These accusations were made after Kyrylo Budanov, chief of staff to the President of Ukraine and former chief of military intelligence, issued a statement on September 7. The post pointed out that "from Russia to Africa... the General Intelligence Service is protecting Uzbekistan's interests in various ways around the world... in the scorching deserts and the freezing Antarctic." It also attached photos of four white men with blurred faces, a group of armed men in turbans, and a pickup truck in the desert. Five days later, CNN quoted Uzbek military intelligence personnel as confirming that drone operators in the Sahel region had provided training and support to the FLA.

An FLA source admitted to AFP that the organization "maintains contact with the Ukrainians" but that the fighting in the past few months "has been carried out by the FLA and JNIM". This source denied accepting equipment, logistics or intelligence support from Ukraine, but admitted that Kiev provided some guidance. In 2023, three or four Ukrainians went to northern Mali to train FLA personnel, and several soldiers went to Ukraine to receive intensive drone training for 30 days. A second FLA source said the training in northern Mali took place "near the border with Mauritania" and that the photo posted by Budanov "could have been taken then or in Syria".

A local diplomat who requested anonymity pointed out that Uzbek personnel are "definitely" operating in northern Mali, communicating with the FLA through the Mauritanian border. The drones used by the separatist organization also come from Uzbekistan. A study by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in the United States last November pointed out that Kiev began to provide the separatist organization with drones in early 2024. In July of that year, Ukrainian military intelligence officer Andriy Yusov hinted that Kiev provided intelligence information to fighters from the FLA and JNIM; these two organizations launched attacks in northern Mali, killing dozens of Russian mercenaries and Malian soldiers.