Defense - Bundeswehr soldiers back in Germany after deployment in Mali
The last Bundeswehr soldiers involved in the UN mission in Mali, West Africa, have landed back in Germany. On Friday, the 304 soldiers flew from the Senegalese capital Dakar to Wunstorf near Hanover in two A400M military transporters and an A330MRTT. There, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) received them in the presence of family members to pay tribute to their achievements.
The UN peacekeeping mission Minusma in Mali was set up in spring 2013 to stabilize the country and help enforce a peace agreement between the government and rebels. However, Islamist terrorist groups, some of which are allied with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State terrorist group, are once again spreading in the Sahel region. A conflict between Mali and separatist Tuareg rebels is also threatening to break out again.
This summer, Mali's military government nevertheless demanded the withdrawal of all 12,000 UN soldiers after expanding its cooperation with Russia. The UN Security Council then initiated the end of Minusma. Germany had already decided to end its involvement. The withdrawal took months and was complicated by a military coup in neighboring Niger.
The conclusion of Minusma marks the end of the Bundeswehr's second major deployment outside Europe after its withdrawal from Afghanistan. The mission in Mali was recently regarded as its most dangerous deployment.
Bundeswehr on the Minusma mission
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Source: www.stern.de
