After years of tensions and a military government demand, the United Nations Security Council has ended a decade-long peacekeeping mission in Mali. The mission, known as MINUSMA, began in 2013 in an effort to restore stability and protect civilians against an armed rebellion that has killed thousands.

The 15-member council on Friday adopted a resolution asking the mission to begin its withdrawal on Saturday with a “safe and orderly drawdown” to be completed by December 31, 2023. The resolution authorised MINUSMA to respond to imminent threats of violence to civilians and contribute to the safe, civilian-led delivery of humanitarian assistance until September 30. It also requested UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to work with the Malian authorities on a plan to transfer MINUSMA’s tasks and present it to the Security Council by August 15.

The US deputy ambassador, Jeffrey DeLaurentis, expressed regret at the military government’s decision to abandon the UN mission and called on the mission to ensure the safe and orderly transfer of UN facilities and equipment to UN-designated places to “minimise the risk that its assets fall into the hands of those looking to destabilise Mali”. The UK’s UN Ambassador Barbara Woodward expressed regret that Mali wanted the peacekeepers to leave at a time when the region is “facing increasing instability and humanitarian needs”. Meanwhile, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov “renewed his country’s unstinting support towards Mali in the military-technical field as well as for humanitarian and economic assistance”.

MINUSMA was deployed in 2013 in an effort to restore stability and protect civilians against an armed rebellion that has killed thousands and taken root following an uprising in 2012. Since then, the peacekeeping force has been hampered by government restrictions and the presence of Russian mercenary group Wagner in 2021. The end of MINUSMA’s operations has sparked fears that the security situation could worsen when the mission departs, leaving Mali’s underequipped army alone with about 1,000 Wagner fighters to combat fighters who control swaths of territory in the desert north and centre.

The UN Security Council has made clear that Mali must cooperate fully with the UN during MINUSMA’s withdrawal in order to ensure the safe and orderly transfer of UN facilities and equipment. The Council also renewed its commitment to support Mali in the military-technical field as well as for humanitarian and economic assistance. The mission’s departure marks an end to MINUSMA’s decade-long fight to restore stability and protect civilians against an armed rebellion in the region. Whether the UN’s departure from Mali will lead to further instability is yet to be seen.