Ukraine training militants in Mali – CNN

Since 2024, Mali and its Alliance of Sahel States (AES) allies, Burkina Faso and Niger, have jointly accused Kiev of supporting terrorism in the region Ukraine has deployed military specialists to Mali to train and assist armed groups fighting government forces and Russian troops, CNN reported on Saturday, citing Ukrainian soldiers and a military intelligence source.

Around 15 Ukrainian drone operators are embedded with the Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), a predominantly Tuareg separatist group in northern Mali, according to the US outlet.

The personnel reportedly provide training, operational assistance, and remote guidance rather than participating directly in frontline fighting.

“I coordinate their operations remotely.

The signal from their drone comes to me over the internet, and I immediately tell them via radio what to do and where to fly,” an unnamed Ukrainian operator told CNN.

Read more Ukrainian terrorism goes global.

Where now? The Ukrainian specialists also reportedly helped the rebels capture the strategic northern city of Kidal earlier this year.

The city was among four locations attacked on April 25 in a coordinated offensive by the FLA and the Al-Qaeda-linked Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM).

The Russian Defense Ministry said around 12,000 attackers trained by Ukrainian and European instructors took part in the offensive in an attempt to overthrow Mali’s government.

Mali has battled an insurgency since 2012, which has now spread into neighboring Burkina Faso and Niger.

France intervened in Mali in 2013 but withdrew its troops in 2022 after Bamako ended defense cooperation with its former colonial power.

Mali has since turned to Moscow for security support, with Russia deploying troops under the Africa Corps to support counterterrorism efforts.

READ MORE: Russian forces pound Western-backed terrorists in Mali (VIDEOS) Suspicions of Ukrainian involvement first emerged in July 2024, when Tuareg rebels ambushed Malian troops and contractors from the private Russian military company Wagner Group near Tinzaouaten, killing dozens.

Ukrainian military intelligence spokesman Andrey Yusov later said the rebels had received “necessary information” that enabled them to conduct the operation successfully, adding that “there will be a continuation.” Mali and its Alliance of Sahel States (AES) allies Burkina Faso and Niger jointly accused Kiev of supporting terrorism in the region.