The United States has restored privileged partner status to Mali as reward for the strife-torn country's gradual return to democracy, the White House said in a statement on Monday.
The US military plans to set up a base for drones in northwest Africa to bolster surveillance of Al-Qaeda's affiliate in the region as well as allied Islamist extremists, a US official told AFP on Monday.
Fears mounted Thursday that Al Qaeda-linked Islamists were turning Mali into a rogue state despite the announcement by Tuareg rebels that their 10-week military offensive was complete.
Mali's Tuareg rebels claimed control of the legendary desert town of Timbuktu on Sunday, part of a dramatic push across the north, as the disorganised junta indicated it was ready to cede some power.
WASHINGTON — The United States said Monday it was suspending tens of millions of dollars in aid to Mali after a coup in the African nation last week, and called for the elected government to be restored.
Renegade Mali soldiers on Thursday claimed they had seized power from an "incompetent regime," announcing on television they had suspended the constitution and dissolved state institutions.
