The Russian group has been accused of abuses.Mali has asked private Russian companies to boost security, Russia's foreign minister confirmed on Saturday, as the Malian leader accused France of abandoning the conflict-ridden country by preparing a large troop drawdown.
France has warned Mali that hiring the fighters from the Russian private-security firm would isolate the country internationally. Russian paramilitaries, private-security instructors and companies have grown increasingly influential in Africa in recent years, particularly in the conflict-ridden Central African Republic, where the UN has accused Wagner contractors of committing abuses.
"To say: 'I was there first, get out,' it's insulting, first of all for the government in Bamako which invited foreign partners," insisted Lavrov.France, which has lost 52 soldiers in the Sahel since it began engagements in January 2013, has decided to reorganise its military presence around a tighter unit centred on targeted strikes against jihadist leaders and on supporting local armies.