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Last Bundeswehr troops serving in Mali as part of the international MINUSMA peacekeeping mission flew back to a German air base on Friday.
Despite the abrupt end to their duties, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius told the soldiers they had served with distinction.
“In the end, the political circumstances in Mali for a useful mission simply did not exist anymore. Your withdrawal was, therefore, the consistent and correct decision,” Pistorius said at a ceremony at the Wunstorf air base in northern Germany.
A group of just over 300 soldiers returned on two transport planes on Friday. Germany’s Defense Ministry said roughly 20,000 Bundeswehr military personnel had served in Mali over the years.
“So, what is our conclusion? You, dear soldiers, you have fulfilled your mission. Your achievements were excellent, and what you, and the contingents before you, achieved was not in vain and did not go unnoticed,” the Social Democrat (SPD) politician said.
Mali’s current military government took power in a coup in 2021, deposing rival soldiers who had seized power the previous year. Both juntas claimed their rule was a temporary step and that they were dissatisfied with the former government’s efforts in fighting insurgencies.
The new leadership in Bamako started cultivating closer ties to Russia, and particularly to its quasi-official international mercenary Wagner Group for security matters.