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Mali, Burkina Faso, Guinea Hope for Progress in Rejoining AU at Its Summit: Malian Foreign Minister

© Yuri KadobnovMalian Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop attends a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, Friday, May 20, 2022.
Malian Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop attends a meeting with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, Friday, May 20, 2022. - Sputnik International, 1920, 17.02.2023
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The West African nations were suspended from the African Union (AU) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) after changes of government as a result of military coups in recent years.
The foreign ministers of Mali, Burkina Faso and Guinea have arrived in Addis Ababa, where the 36th Summit of the African Union takes place on 15-20 February. On the sidelines of the event, Abdoulaye Diop, head of Malian diplomacy, explained to Sputnik why he decided to attend the meeting despite his country being suspended from the AU.

"For us, the lifting of the suspension measures also allows us to support the efforts that are underway in our countries. This is why we are here," the minister notes, adding: "We are here as part of a collective effort between Burkina, Mali and Guinea to share the concerns of our people who want more solidarity with our countries that are facing insecurity and are making a lot of efforts, which also work for the return to constitutional order."

According to Diop, the three governments have made commitments regarding the return to constitutional order with transitional constitutional laws adopted and special bodies set up.
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Together with Foreign Minister Morissanda Kouyate of Guinea and Burkina's Olivia Rouamba, Abdoulaye Diop has met with Comoran Foreign Minister Dhoihir Dhoulkamal, whose country will hold the AU's presidency in 2023, as stated by the Malian foreign ministry via social media.
The ministry added that its head also met with Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde as well as his counterparts from Rwanda and Algeria.

"We will engage in a discussion collectively with the PSC [Peace and Security Council, decision-enforcing organ of the AU] and also with all the individual members of the PSC. We just met with the chairperson of the African Union Commission [Moussa Faki Mahamat]. And for us it is really the beginning of a discussion," Diop says.

According to the Malian Foreign Ministry, the joint delegation will continue its consultations with the continent's foreign ministers, Comoran President Azali Assoumani and Moussa Faki Mahamat.
The countries' joint diplomatic campaign had been announced last week by the three ministers after their meeting in Burkina Faso's capital Ouagadougou.
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Mali is led by Colonel Assimi Goita, who organized military coups in the country in August 2020 and May 2021 and has been serving as the interim president since the latter. Colonel Mamady Doumbouya is the interim president of Guinea since October 2021. Captain Ibrahim Traore became Burkina Faso's president after the September 2022 coup.
Mali and Burkina Faso are part of the Sahel Region, which has been troubled by an Islamist insurgency since 2011.
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