The transitional president of Burkina Faso, Lieutenant Colonel Paul-Henri Sandaogo Damiba, made a short visit to Bamako on Saturday where he was greeted by his Malian counterpart, Colonel Assimi Goita.
According to the Malian Presidency, the two leaders had a private talk followed by an extended meeting with their collaborators. Diplomatic sources said there was much talk of the fight against terrorism in the Sahel, including the return of Mali to the regional mechanism.
On May 16, Mali decided to leave the G5 Sahel (a regional organization comprising Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania, Niger and Chad), denouncing what it calls “instrumentalization.” On Aug. 22, both Burkina Faso and Niger asked Mali to “come back and assume its responsibilities” within the sub-regional cooperation body to efficiently fight terrorism.
According to Malian diplomatic sources, Damiba also reiterated this request to his Malian counterpart, Colonel Assimi Goita on Saturday. Enditem
