The President of the Malian transition, Colonel Assimi Goïta, said Monday “to remain open” to dialogue with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), following the heavy sanctions imposed on his country by the leaders. of the sub-regional organization during their summit held in Accra on Sunday.
“Even if we regret the illegitimate, illegal and inhuman nature of certain decisions, Mali remains open to dialogue with ECOWAS to find a consensus between the superior interests of the Malian people and respect for the fundamental principles of the organization”, said Colonel Goïta in a speech broadcast Monday evening on public television, while calling on his compatriots for calm and “resilience” in the face of this situation.
“I ask you to remain calm and serene because we have made the choice to be sincere in order to take our destiny in hand by forging our own path”, underlined the Malian leader.
“The time has come for all Malians to come together without exclusivity to reaffirm our positions of principle and defend our homeland. Every Malian, every Malian wherever he is, must behave as a defender of the best interests of Mali. We are measuring the seriousness of the situation ”, he said, adding: “It is up to everyone to silence divisions of any kind and to come together around the essential that is Mali, our homeland. Also, I call for constant mobilization and resilience in the face of the situation ”.
“ECOWAS and UEMOA have assumed responsibility, we will do the same. No need to proceed with acts of violence that has never characterized the Malians that we are ”, again underlined Colonel Goita.
“We hoped that before the extraordinary conference of ECOWAS, a careful examination would be made of the schedule submitted and a period would be given to discuss our proposal before deciding”, further noted the Malian official.
“We call on ECOWAS, once again, for a thorough analysis of the situation in our country by placing the best interests of the Malian people above any other consideration,” he said.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) imposed on Sunday a series of retaliatory measures against the Malian authorities.
The heads of state and government of ECOWAS, meeting in Accra, decided to recall the ambassadors of West African countries accredited to Bamako, and to close the borders with Mali within the sub-regional space and suspend trade other than in basic necessities.
They also decided to cut financial aid and freeze Mali’s assets at the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO).
After these sanctions, Mali decided on Monday to recall its ambassadors in ECOWAS member states and to close land and air borders with these countries.
“The government of Mali strongly condemns these illegal and illegitimate sanctions”, said a statement read on national television by the government spokesperson, Colonel Abdoulaye Maïga.
“The government of Mali regrets that West African sub-regional organizations are being exploited by extra-regional powers with ulterior motives”, the statement added.
ECOWAS had already suspended Mali from its decision-making bodies and imposed a freeze on their financial assets and a travel ban on 150 personalities from this country.
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