Radio Progress News first radio station in the Upper West Region
Mali’s move on Friday came days after Sweden’s minister for international development cooperation and trade, Johan Forssell, said the government had decided to phase out aid to Mali.
“You cannot support Russia’s illegal war of aggression against Ukraine and at the same time receive several hundred million crowns each year in development aid,” Forssell said on Wednesday, commenting on a post on X which said Mali was cutting ties with Ukraine.
Forsell’s spokesperson said on Friday that the decision to halt and out phase development aid was taken in December, and that humanitarian assistance would continue.
The diplomatic spat underscores the broader geopolitical shift unfolding in the Sahel region as three military-led states – Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger – pivot away from traditional Western allies towards Russia.
In June, due to the deteriorating security situation in Mali, Sweden announced the closure of its embassy in Bamako by the end of 2024 and said Stockholm would continue supporting the region from Dakar, Senegal.
Mali has been plagued by unrest driven by armed groups, making parts of the country ungovernable. The West African nation’s military seized power in a 2020 coup and has made it a priority to re-gain control over the entire country from separatists and hardline groups linked to al-Qaeda and ISIL (ISIS).
