ALGIERS – Algeria has expressed its “great consternation ” regarding the statement released by the Malian transitional government, as well as the one from the College of Heads of State of the Confederation of Sahel States (CES), according to a statement issued on Monday by the Algerian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, National Community Abroad, and African Affairs.
“The Algerian government has learned, with great consternation, of the statement issued by the Malian transitional government, as well as the one from the College of Heads of State of the Confederation of Sahel States,” the ministry’s statement read.
“Through its statement, the transitional government of Mali has made serious accusations against Algeria. Despite the gravity of these false allegations, they barely conceal the search for scapegoats and diversions to cover up the manifest failure of what remains a coup plot that has trapped Mali in a spiral of insecurity, instability, desolation, and deprivation,” the statement further clarified.
“Algeria firmly rejects this temptation, found in all malicious and systematically unfounded attitudes, by which the junta of putschists in Mali vainly attempts to make our country a scapegoat for the failures and setbacks that the Malian people are paying the heaviest price for,” it added.
“The failure of this unconstitutional clique is evident at all levels: political, economic, and security. The only successes this same clique can claim are those of fulfilling personal ambitions at the cost of Mali’s, securing their own survival at the expense of Mali’s protection, and plundering the meager resources of this brotherly country to the detriment of its development,” the statement emphasized.
“The collusion that the Malian government has recklessly established between Algeria and terrorism lacks so much seriousness that it would be superfluous to pay attention to or respond to it. Indeed, Algeria’s credibility, commitment, and determination in the fight against terrorism do not need to be justified or established. On the other hand, the most significant and determining threat to Mali today is the inability of the putschists to undertake a real and effective counter-terrorism effort, to the point of entrusting its management to mercenaries, a situation that Africa has suffered greatly from in its recent history.”
“The destruction of a Malian drone by Algeria’s Air Defense Forces immediately prompted an official statement from the Ministry of National Defense. The Algerian government stands by the contents of this statement and would like to add the following:
Firstly, all data related to this incident are available in the database of the Algerian Ministry of National Defense, particularly radar images that clearly establish the violation of Algeria’s airspace.
Secondly, this is not the first violation by a Malian drone of Algeria’s airspace, but the third in just a few months. The first two violations occurred on August 27, 2024, and December 29, 2024. All data related to these violations are available in the Ministry of National Defense’s database.
Thirdly, regarding the incident that occurred on the night of March 31 to April 1, 2025, all available data in the Ministry of National Defense’s database, including radar images, confirm that there was a violation of Algeria’s airspace at 12:08 a.m. over a distance of 1.6 km. The drone first violated national airspace, then moved away, before returning on an offensive trajectory.
Fourthly, the entry of the Malian drone into Algerian airspace, its withdrawal, and subsequent return in an offensive manner led to its qualification as an act of hostility. Following this qualification, the Algerian Air Defense Forces Command ordered its destruction,” the statement specified.
“The Algerian government deeply regrets the reckless alignment of Niger and Burkina Faso with the erroneous theses presented by Mali,” the statement further assured.
It also expressed regret at the “outrageous and unjustified language directed at Algeria, a language that it condemns and rejects with the utmost firmness.”
“Finally, the Algerian government regrets having to apply reciprocity by recalling its ambassadors to Mali and Niger for consultations and delaying the appointment of its new ambassador to Burkina Faso,” the statement concluded.
