Sweden Announces Early Pullout Of Troops From U.N. Mali Mission

Sweden is set to pull its force of about 220 soldiers out of the United Nations peacekeeping mission in Mali in June 2023, a year earlier than planned.

In a statement, the Swedish Armed Forces said that in recent times, conditions had changed in the country, but until the last of their soldier is home, we continue to conduct operations just as usual.

Sweden did not give a direct reason but has previously said that the involvement of Russian contractors, condemned by European countries, was making the presence of its forces untenable.

Spokespeople for the mission, known as MINUSMA, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It had about 12,000 troops on the ground in late 2021, according to its website.

There’s has been a broader departure of European forces from Mali led by former colonial ruler France, which said last month it was withdrawing its anti-militant taskforce after nearly a decade fighting Islamist insurgents.

Mali is ruled by a military junta which staged successive coups in 2020 and 2021 and has reneged on a promise to hold early elections, fraying its alliances with Western nations.

Despite the presence of the French and U.N. troops, violence by groups linked to al Qaeda and Islamic State has worsened in Mali in recent years and spread to neighbouring countries including Burkina Faso and Niger.

About 800 private contractors belonging to Russia’s Wagner Group are currently deployed in Mali, the Swedish military’s statement said, higher than the 300-400 that a French official estimated in January.