The recent friction in Russian-Algerian ties over this conflict might be alleviated while Mali could consider offering the Tuaregs broad autonomy in exchange for joining forces against radical Islamists.
Insightful article and apt comparison with the Kurds. French support for Jihadists sounds familiar to other Western efforts supporting jihadists in other areas, and short sighted.
The root of the conflict in Mali is the highly trained Tuaregs' several rebellions that were launched in pursuit of real political autonomy.
Gaddafi's overthrow by NATO led to some of these same highly trained fighters returning home with impressive weaponry to stage yet another rebellion.
That was in turn hijacked by Islamist radicals, which led to France's Operation Barkhane. That intervention failed to destroy the radicals but nonetheless saved the national government.
Mali's withdrawal from the 2015 Algiers Agreement, even though it blamed the Tuaregs for violating it first, suggests that the national government is no longer interested in autonomy.
That's concerning because the Tuaregs, similar to the Kurds, will likely continue rebelling until they receive real political autonomy, so the conflict likely won't end anytime soon.
The spirit of Russia's Syrian proposal remains sound, particularly the bestowment of cultural autonomy upon the Kurds, which Assad flat-out refused to countenance.
In Mali's case, some form of political autonomy would likely be required to sustainably end the conflict, but a bespoke form that isn't copied-and-pasted from the Iraqi Kurdish one.
I genuinely struggle to understand critics like you who are totally against any discussion of political autonomy to the Tuaregs after Mali already agreed to this from 2015-2025.
Do you care to elaborate on why you think that was a mistake? Or are you just trolling and taking potshots at me from the sidelines while hiding behind your anonymity?
I'm getting tired of the trolls that have found their way to my Substack, but I'm also giving people a second chance to prove that they aren't trolls before I block them.
I really hope that you're not playing me as a fool like many others before you have. If that's the case, you'll be blocked, and anyone else who trolls under this post will be blocked too.
They, unlike you, won't get any second chances. I encourage contrarian views, but I ask that they be respectful and elaborated upon, not these cheap comments like yours above.
Insightful article and apt comparison with the Kurds. French support for Jihadists sounds familiar to other Western efforts supporting jihadists in other areas, and short sighted.
" In that event, Russia could mediate between Algeria, Mali, and the Tuaregs, potentially reaching a Syrian-like agreement "
The last thing Mali needs is a "Syrian-Like" agreement.
The root of the conflict in Mali is the highly trained Tuaregs' several rebellions that were launched in pursuit of real political autonomy.
Gaddafi's overthrow by NATO led to some of these same highly trained fighters returning home with impressive weaponry to stage yet another rebellion.
That was in turn hijacked by Islamist radicals, which led to France's Operation Barkhane. That intervention failed to destroy the radicals but nonetheless saved the national government.
Mali's withdrawal from the 2015 Algiers Agreement, even though it blamed the Tuaregs for violating it first, suggests that the national government is no longer interested in autonomy.
That's concerning because the Tuaregs, similar to the Kurds, will likely continue rebelling until they receive real political autonomy, so the conflict likely won't end anytime soon.
The spirit of Russia's Syrian proposal remains sound, particularly the bestowment of cultural autonomy upon the Kurds, which Assad flat-out refused to countenance.
In Mali's case, some form of political autonomy would likely be required to sustainably end the conflict, but a bespoke form that isn't copied-and-pasted from the Iraqi Kurdish one.
I genuinely struggle to understand critics like you who are totally against any discussion of political autonomy to the Tuaregs after Mali already agreed to this from 2015-2025.
Do you care to elaborate on why you think that was a mistake? Or are you just trolling and taking potshots at me from the sidelines while hiding behind your anonymity?
I'm getting tired of the trolls that have found their way to my Substack, but I'm also giving people a second chance to prove that they aren't trolls before I block them.
I really hope that you're not playing me as a fool like many others before you have. If that's the case, you'll be blocked, and anyone else who trolls under this post will be blocked too.
They, unlike you, won't get any second chances. I encourage contrarian views, but I ask that they be respectful and elaborated upon, not these cheap comments like yours above.