Burkina Faso not planning to hire Russia’s Wagner mercenaries like Mali

Burkina Faso’s interim President Ibrahim Traore has assured US diplomats that he has no intention of inviting mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner group to fight militants in the country, US under secretary for political affairs Victoria Nuland said on Wednesday (26 October).
Western powers have expressed a concern that Burkina Faso might follow the lead of neighboring Mali, which in late 2021 hired mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner group to help its army fight Islamist insurgents. Security has deteriorated since Wagner forces entered Mali, rights abuses have been reported and UN peacekeepers have been squeezed out, said Nuland, who had just returned to the United States from a West Africa tour. “We had a chance to sit with interim president Traore and his leadership team, including his defense minister. He was unequivocal in saying that only Burkinabe will defend their country. They have no intention of inviting Wagner,” she said at a digital media briefing.
Jihadist groups — some with links to Al-Qaeda and Islamic State — have been waging an insurgency in the Sahel region, gaining ground despite the presence of foreign troops and UN peacekeepers. Frustrations over growing insecurity have spurred two military coups in Mali since August 2020 and two in Burkina Faso this year. Both countries are under pressure to restore civilian rule and have committed to holding elections in 2024. Nuland warned that insecurity would challenge the transition process but said “at least the civilians responsible for the election appear to be keeping the preparations on track”. Relations between Mali and the West have soured over the junta’s reluctance to hold elections and its collaboration with the Russian mercenaries, which the UN has accused of summarily executing civilians and other human rights violations alongside Malian soldiers. Both Russia and Mali have repeatedly denied this.