Ukrainian special services train Mali rebels to operate drones, media reports

Ukrainian special services have offered information and training to Tuareg rebels in Mali, particularly in drone operation, the French outlet Le Monde reported on Aug. 1, citing a Tuareg commander and other sources.

A group of Tuareg fighters, a coalition of anti-government groups in the north of Mali, claimed on July 27 to have destroyed an "entire column of the Malian army and Russian mercenaries."

Following the reports, Telegram accounts affiliated with the Wagner Group confirmed on July 29 the deaths of Wagner fighters in a battle in Mali.

Tuareg fighters then claimed on Aug. 1 to have killed 84 Wagner mercenaries in recent clashes.

Ukrainian special services have explored strategic cooperation with Tuareg soldiers, a rebel commander told Le Monde.

"We have links with the Ukrainians, but just as we have with everyone else, the French, Americans, and others," said Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane, a spokesperson for the pro-independence coalition.

Andrii Yusov, Ukraine's military intelligence (HUR) spokesperson, said on July 29 during a television broadcast that Ukrainian intelligence services had cooperated with rebels in Mali.

The Tuareg soldiers "received useful information, and not just that, which allowed them to carry out a successful military operation against Russian war criminals," Yusov said.

Yusov did not provide details regarding the nature of the collaboration.

According to Le Monde's sources, some rebels received training from Ukrainian forces on how to fly drones.

The West African nation of Mali has been the subject of a significant Russian influence campaign since the Malian army overthrew the government in a coup in 2021. The Wagner mercenary group, headed by the late Yevgeny Prigozhin, was particularly active in Mali, and has been accused of perpetrating war crimes and widespread looting.

Russia maintains a strong presence in African countries through Wagner and other entities, propping up authoritarian governments, fueling destabilization, and extracting resources to fund its war against Ukraine.

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The Kyiv IndependentAlexander Khrebet