Escalation and Strategic Failure: Mali's Security Crisis (iss.europa.eu)

• Strategic coordination between separatists and jihadist groups escalates pressure on Bamako.
• Failure of Russia’s Africa Corps highlights the limitations of Moscow’s military influence.
• The security-first approach is failing to address deep-rooted socio-political grievances.

"Coordinated attacks on April 25 signal a major shift in Mali’s security landscape, with a tactical alignment between the FLA and JNIM challenging the ruling junta. The defeat and withdrawal of Russia's Africa Corps from Kidal suggest that Moscow’s security partnership is failing to stabilize the regime. Meanwhile, the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) remains unable to intervene effectively. As the conflict fragments, the reliance on a militarized, external-support-driven model has exacerbated internal grievances, leaving the state in a highly volatile position as armed groups consolidate territorial control and local authority."