The EU regrets the decision of the transitional authorities in Mali to withdraw their country from all G5 Sahel bodies and agencies, including the Joint Force - a decision announced on the evening of Sunday 15 May, and which the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, described on Tuesday 17 May as “very bad news”.
“Even if the decision to remain a member of the G5 Sahel is up to each of the sovereign states that make it up, we can...