Mali’s Tuareg rebels reveal contacts with Russia’s Africa Corps and seek Türkiye’s role

The Azawad Liberation Front (FLA), a Tuareg separatist group
fighting the Malian government, has disclosed direct contacts with
Russia’s Africa Corps and called for dialogue with Türkiye as part
of efforts to find a political solution to Mali’s deepening
crisis.

FLA spokesperson Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane told Middle East
Eye that the group hopes to engage with Ankara, whose growing
influence in Mali has made Türkiye an increasingly important player
in the country.

The FLA is currently fighting Malian government forces alongside
Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an armed group aligned
with al-Qaeda. Despite coordinating military operations, the two
groups have fundamentally different objectives.

The FLA seeks autonomy for the Tuareg-dominated Azawad region in
northeastern Mali, while JNIM aims to overthrow the Malian
government.

The alliance has enabled the groups to coordinate offensives,
seize towns and military bases and impose pressure on the capital
Bamako. The conflict has also resulted in the killing of Mali’s
Defence Minister Sadio Camara, according to the report.

Russia’s growing role

The situation marks a major shift from the period when French
and other Western forces supported the Malian government in its
fight against JNIM and its predecessors.

Mali has since deepened its military relationship with Moscow.
Russia deployed Wagner Group personnel to the country in 2022,
while the Russian military presence was subsequently reorganized
under the Africa Corps following Wagner founder Yevgeny Prigozhin’s
failed mutiny against President Vladimir Putin in 2023.

However, the Russian deployment has faced challenges in northern
Mali.

An FLA and JNIM offensive in April highlighted vulnerabilities
in Russia’s position in the region, with Africa Corps personnel
withdrawing from the strategic city of Kidal before it was captured
by the FLA.

Further reports emerged in July of possible arrangements between
the FLA and Africa Corps during fighting around Anefis,
approximately 100 kilometers southeast of Kidal.

Ramadane confirmed that the FLA had maintained direct contact
with Africa Corps personnel but stressed that the exchanges should
not be interpreted as political negotiations or a strategic
rapprochement between the two sides.

The disclosure highlights the increasingly fluid alliances
surrounding Mali’s conflict, where separatist, Islamist and state
forces are pursuing competing objectives while external powers seek
to expand their influence.

Against this backdrop, the FLA’s call for dialogue with Türkiye
suggests that Ankara could potentially play a role in future
efforts to address the political dimensions of the conflict.