France–Mali relations in Paris. There are over 120,000 Malians in France. In response to the rise of al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb in 2012 following the collapse of Azawad as part of Northern Mali conflict, France deployed 4,000 troops and sent many military equipments in part of Operation Serval. France has been very cautious of Mali's situation, as Mali was a former colony of France and has ties with France. In 2017, President Emmanuel Macron had vowed to fight every terrorist in Mali. France–Mali relations France–Mali relations refers to the current and historical relations between France and Mali. France was the former
British military intervention in the Sierra Leone Civil War airport, deployment of regular ground forces for a similar operation, or re-routing the Amphibious Ready Group (ARG). COBRA concluded that it lacked sufficient information to recommend one of the three options and instructed the MoD to continue to develop them, while also recommending that an "operational reconnaissance and liaison team" (ORLT) be sent to Sierra Leone to assess the situation and advise on how the military could be useful. The Prime Minister, Tony Blair, approved the ORLT, which was led by Brigadier David Richards, Chief of Joint Force Operations. Richards had previously visited Sierra Leone twice during the civil war—first