Security Council unanimously backs Mali intervention force

The U.N. Security Council today voted unanimously to establish a U.S. and European-backed African military force to rebuild Mali’s troubled military, and to begin preparing it for a possible military offensive to retake control of northern Mali from a coalition of Malian separatists and Islamic extremists.

The European Union plans to send military trainers to Bamako in the coming months to begin training the Malian army, which — disgruntled by the government’s inability to counter insurgent forces — staged a military coup in March and forced the removal of the interim leader this December.

A reconstituted and reequipped Malian army is intended to lead a campaign to conquer the north. But the supporting African force — which is expected to be made up of several thousand troops from West Africa and the Sahel — is unlikely to be sent to Mali before September or October, 2013.

The Security Council resolution does not specify what role the United States would play in the military campaign against al Qaeda and its allies. But it provides wide legal scope for foreign governments, including the United States, to "take all necessary measures" — including the use of lethal force — and provide "any necessary assistance, " including military training, equipment, intelligence and logistics, in support of the Malian fight against Islamic extremists.

The Obama administration has harbored deep misgivings about the ability of a Malian-led force to prevail in combat with al Qaeda and its allies. But today’s vote ended weeks of tense negotiations between France, which was determined to authorize a new intervention force before the year’s end, and the United States, which wanted to wait until the country had elected a new civilian president.

Washington agreed to co-sponsor today’s resolution after securing a commitment from Paris to ensure that the United States and other Security Council members would be give another shot at reviewing the military plan before the force receives a green light for offensive operations.

Following the vote, France’s U.N. ambassador Gerard Araud said a military attack on Islamic forces in northern Mali was not inevitable, however, and that his government still held out hope that the crisis could be resolved through political dialogue with Mali’s moderate northern insurgents. The resolution, he said, "is not a declaration of war."

Long a model of African stability and democracy, Mali’s civilian government has faced a series of existential threats to its rule this year, including a rebellion in northern Mali by an alliance of Malian Touareg’s and al Qaeda linked groups, primarily Ansar Dine, followed by a military coup by soldiers embittered by the failure of President Amadou Toumani Toure to adequately supply troops seeking to put down the rebellion.

In recent months, Islamic militants — including al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb and the Movement of United and Jihad in West Africa — have seized control the uprising, driving out their erstwhile Touareg allies from key northern cities, including Timbuktu and Gao, imposing sharia law, and committing widespread human rights abuses. Their presence has raised concern in Washington, which is expected to help train, equip, and provide transport for the new force, known as the African-led International Support Mission, or AFISMA.

But the political turmoil in Mali has complicated Washington’s role. U.S. law restricts financial assistance or military aid to Mali, because its democratic government was ousted in a coup in March, led by Capt. Amadou Sanogo, who remains the power behind a fragile transitional government. Earlier this month, the military again showed its strength and displeasure, ordering the arrest of the interim Prime Minister Cheick Modibo Diarra, and forcing his resignation. Django Sissoko was later named to replace him.

The United States has insisted that Mali conduct new presidential elections, preferably in April, before any final decision is made to send a Malian-led African force into the north.

The new force, which will be made up primarily of troops from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and the Sahel, including Nigeria and Senegal, is intended to put military muscle behind a broader plan to restore stability and democracy in Mali.

Today’s resolution urges Malian authorities to commit to a "transitional roadmap," including inclusive political talks with northern groups — including the Touaregs — that "cut off all ties to terrorist organizations" linked to al Qaeda. It also calls for holding elections "by April 2013 or as soon as technically possible."

The resolution aims to place a wedge between ethnic Malian rebel groups and the more hardline Islamists, threatening to impose sanctions on individuals who maintain links with al Qaeda and its associates. It also expresses its "readiness to consider appropriate measures" against Malian officers to who stand in the way of the country’s transition to civilian rule.

Today’s vote, said Ivory Coast’s U.N. ambassador, Youssoufou Bamba, speaking on behalf of ECOWAS, "is a great message of hope and solidarity" for Malians "who can now begin to believe [there will be an] end of their nightmares."

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