What will France do in Mali?

It is completely uncertain how long France's military involvement in Mali will last. The fact is that the region needs to be stabilized in the long term in order to prevent the spread of radical Islamist movements. This is why the Society for Vulnerable Peoples (STP) demands that a real plan be presented. "Because the Islamists will use their old tactics and quickly retreat to inaccessible mountains and caves to regroup," says Ulrich Delijus, STP's Africa officer.

Officially, Paris has security interests in the foreground. The French government justifies the intervention with the intention of preventing the rebels in West Africa from becoming a threat to Europe in time.

"France fears that Mali, if an Islamic state is established there, could become a retreat and training ground for Islamist terrorists," explains Katrin Prodano from the German Association for Foreign Relations (DGAP). In addition, as a former colonial power, France sees itself exposed to a high risk of becoming a target of terrorist attacks.

For example, radical Islamists in Mali have held four workers of the French nuclear concern Areva captive since 2010, while the Al-Qaeda terrorist network is now threatening further kidnappings and attacks in France and about 5.000 French citizens in Mali.

Description of the fighting in northern Mali

Oil and uranium

However, it is not only about potential terrorist threats. "France's long-term interest is focused on natural resources in the Sahel zone, especially oil and uranium, which the French nuclear concern Areva has been extracting from neighboring Niger for decades," says Katrin Prodano. However, it will take a long time until the exploitation of natural resources in Mali begins - this military intervention has primarily security and political goals, Prodano told Deutsche Vele.

Ulrich Delius recalls the French attack on Libya two years ago: "Many countries were of course interested in Libya, primarily because of oil. In the case of Mali, it is different," says this expert on Africa: here Paris is pursuing concrete strategic goals.

For France, engagement in Mali is a double-edged sword: on the one hand, there are security and economic interests, on the other, there is a risk of being declared a neo-colonial power. France relies on the resolution of the UN Security Council from December 2012.

"There is also a defense agreement between France and Mali, which was written just for cases like this," says Alexander Stroh, research associate at the German Institute for Global and Regional Studies (GIGA).

With its involvement, France therefore fulfills the request of the Malian government to stop the march of the rebels towards the capital.

Internal political contradictions

French President Francois Hollande must not lose sight of the domestic political scene either: During the election campaign, he announced the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. And he achieved that.

A military operation in Mali could damage his credibility. In addition, the budget does not leave him much room for maneuver: there is not much money for expensive actions abroad.

France does not want a solo venture in Mali and calls for it to be a multilateral intervention with African soldiers at the forefront.

The UN Security Council approved the intervention. The European Union has promised to train Mali's army - and this is important for Paris, because it means a division of labor and support from Brussels.

Gallery