Mali cuts diplomatic ties with Ukraine over Wagner ambush claims.Mali says it has cut diplomatic relations with Ukraine, after a military official suggested Kyiv had played a role in deadly fighting near the Algerian border last month.Dozens of Malian soldiers and mercenaries from Russia’s Wagner group were killed in days of clashes with Tuareg separatist rebels and fighters linked to al-Qaeda.Andriy Yusov, a spokesman for Ukrainian military intelligence, said last week that the rebels had been given the “necessary information” to conduct the attacks.A top Malian official, Colonel Abdoulaye Maiga, said his government was shocked to hear the claim and accused Ukraine of violating Mali’s sovereignty.Yusov’s comments “admitted Ukraine’s involvement in a cowardly, treacherous and barbaric attack by armed terrorist groups” that had led to the deaths of Malian soldiers, Col Maiga’s statement said.Mali has decided to break off relations “with immediate effect”, he said.
