The removal of Libya’s Muammar Gadhafi from power, gave rise to a large presence of Islamist extremists in the region. Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey V. Lavrov told the New York Times recently that the spread of terrorism in North Africa was linked to the Western intervention in Libya. He further noted, “France is fighting against those in Mali whom it had once armed in Libya against [Gadhafi]”.
The chaos in Libya was the catalyst that helped destabilize Mali. Tuareg fighters in Gadhafi’s army returning to Mali brought was them large caches of weapons, which fell into the hands of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), a Tuareg separatist group; the Ansar Dine, Tuareg extremists linked to al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM).
In January 2012 almost ninety Malian soldiers were slaughtered in a military camp near the town of Kidal by the well-armed Islamists. The lack of support from President Amadou Toumani Toure to subdue the Islamists led to a military coup in March, which further destabilized the country.
In the chaos that followed, the Islamists took control of the northern towns of Timbuktu, Gao, and Kidal, and instituted Sharia law; the MNLA having a different goal were pushed aside. Mali government leaders blamed NATO’s incursion into Libya for the instability that led to the coup and swift destabilization of northern Mali.
France, Mali’s former colonial power, pressed the U.N. Security Council to deploy an African stabilization force to “restore its territorial integrity as soon as possible [and] that any lost time would only complicate matters”. Mali’s northern region—the size of France—had become the epicenter for Islamist insurgents coming from a number of countries.
On January 10, 2013 French President Francois Hollande received an urgent call from Mali’s interim President Dioncounda Traore, stating that Islamists were advancing south towards Bamako, the capital. France immediately sent troops from neighboring Chad, to unpin the Malian military. Other African countries also contributed military units, which together drove the Islamists from Gao and Timbuktu.
The French however allowed the MNLA and Chadian soldiers to drive the Islamists from Kidal, a former MNLA stronghold. Malian soldiers were excluded from this action, for fears of reprisals against the MNLA. Mali government leaders were stymied by the French move to prevent the Malian military from helping free Kidal of the Islamists. Further tensions occurred in the town of Menaka, when Islamists were driven out, and the MNLA quickly took over the town.
The MNLA has told the Mali government they would not negotiate on territorial unification. Meanwhile MNLA leaders have held talks with the French, claiming they have support of the Tuareg minority, who feel disenfranchised and fear reprisals by the Malian soldiers. The MNLA has also offered to help find the kidnapped French workers from the Areva S.A. uranium mine in neighboring Niger, still thought to be held in Kidal.
In my discussions with several Mali leaders, they believe since independence in 1960 France has shown support for a separate Tuareg homeland in northern Mali. The nomadic Tuareg tribes have eked out a living in the vast Sahara desert for hundreds of years, and want to maintain their own identity. But the Mali government from the inception has opted to maintain its entire territorial integrity.
Mali had been negotiating with a number of interested parties for mineral exploration rights, which ceased once the March coup took place. Geologic reports indicate there could be large uranium deposits in Mali’s northern region, adjacent to Niger. The MNLA today controls several towns near these mineralized zones, which could become a problem for the Bamako government.
Uranium mineralized zones in northern Mali
Niger has the third largest uranium deposits in the world, with extraction exceeding 4,000 tons annually. Areva S.A. has been the main operator since the 1960’s. The precious “yellow-cake” provides fuel for one-third of France’s nuclear power reactors. The Islamists embedded in Mali’s northern border towns had become a threat to Niger mining operations.
According to journalist Stefan Simanowitz, the French military intervention in Mali could be linked to the uranium. He noted that Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius referred to France’s military action in Mali, stating “Key interests were at stake for us, for Africa, for Europe, so we had to act quickly”. Simanowitz surmised it was about the uranium resources in Niger, since “seventy-five percent of France’s electricity comes from this source”. He further noted “A key reason that the governments in Mali and Niger are not keen to give the Tuaregs greater autonomy is that the areas they inhabit are home to vast natural resources...”
American philosopher James Fetzer, noted Niger had given access to some of the uranium resources to China, India and other countries. He noted “France is desperate not to lose its hold on the vast deposits in Mali.” Further saying “The French concern for the uranium reserves is overwhelmingly greater than the French concern for the human rights in Mali...”
The French acted quickly to help drive the Islamists from Mali’s northern towns, and continue to pursue the insurgents in the rugged northern frontier region. The French will need to stay for a period of time to help train the African troops for a counterinsurgency operation—should the Islamists return.
If France does not want to be judged as having a neo-colonialist agenda, they need to help provide a secure environment for the July 2013 elections, and planned National Reconciliation Conference. They need to also be instrumental in bringing the MNLA to the negotiating table, to restore Mali’s territorial integrity. A unified and secure Mali is in France’s best interest, since they have a major economic interest in neighboring Niger.
Mali is one of the most poverty-stricken countries in Africa, with half the population living on $1 per day. It desperately needs sustainable economic development to create jobs, feed the people, and provide better secular education and healthcare services. France needs to support Mali’s unification, so it can pursue the uranium resource potential—which could be Mali’s economic catalyst for a successful future.