Refusal of Germany to participate in military operations in the Sahel
26.8.2020
Question for written answer E-004658/2020/rev.1
to the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
Rule 138
Dominique Bilde (ID)
Around 1 100 German troops are currently supporting the UN’s MINUSMA mission and the EU’s training mission (EUTM) in Mali.
France, for its part, has sent some 5 100 troops to the Sahel as part of Operation Barkhane, the successor to Operation Serval, which ended in 2014. This is in addition to the forces being deployed by the G5 Sahel countries.
The German troops’ mandate does not include participation in combat operations led by the two forces[1].
According to the German defence minister, moreover, Germany has twice refused to send special forces to Mali[2] and the German troops’ mandate has not yet been extended to include combat operations[3]. Finally, Germany is not involved in the Takuba task force launched by France.
- 1.On 30 June 2020, a G5 Sahel summit took place in Nouakchott, Mauritania, with the German Chancellor in attendance. In view of this, what measures will the Vice-President / High Representative take to secure the involvement of other Member States in the Takuba force?
- [1] "The mandate for German troops, however, does not cover taking part in counter-terrorism operations. Any troop mandate needs to be approved by parliament." https://www.dw.com/en/germany-ponders-bigger-troop-mandate-in-africas-sahel/a-51828723
- [2] "The Defense Ministry recently revealed that it twice turned down requests from France to dispatch special forces to Mali to tackle the dangerous security situation."https://www.dw.com/en/germany-ponders-bigger-troop-mandate-in-africas-sahel/a-51828723
- [3] "Although German troops still won't be able to take part in combat operations, such a deployment would likely be more dangerous, as attacks on armed forces are common in many parts of Mali." https://www.dw.com/en/germany-debates-troop-deployment-to-africas-sahel/a-53439955