Denmark to bring back troops from Mali after objections by junta

Denmark has accused coup generals of playing a dirty political game after the junta withdrew the invitation to deploy Danish troops.

Denmark has announced the country would withdraw its newly deployed contingent of 90 troops from Mali after repeated demands by the poor Sahel country’s military junta.

“The coup generals sent out a public statement reiterating that Denmark is not welcome in Mali,” Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod said on Thursday, referring to a repeated demand from the Malian leadership.

“Of course we do not accept that. That is why we have also decided…to bring our forces home,” Kofod told a press conference after a meeting in parliament.

“We are there at the invitation of Mali. The coup generals, in a dirty political game, have withdrawn that invitation. Unfortunately, it is a game we see because they do not want a quick way back to democracy,” Kofod added.

Mali has been struggling to quell a brutal jihadist conflict that first emerged in 2012, before spreading to neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.