France says Mali elections must remain 'absolute priority'

The French government warned Mali's military leaders Monday that holding free elections next year must remain an "absolute priority," after a second coup in the West African country in less than a year.

The warning comes after Mali was suspended from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) at an emergency summit meeting on Sunday.

But the group held off on imposing sanctions or insisting on a reinstatement of Mali's deposed transitional president and prime minister, who were briefly detained last week.

Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in a statement that "France agrees on the absolute priority given by ECOWAS to organising a presidential election on February 27, 2022."

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He added that respecting the democratic transition period "is the condition for maintaining the commitments of Mali's partners," and reiterated France's "strong condemnation of the coup d'etat".

Paris had warned last week that it was considering targeted sanctions against the country's military leaders if the transition period did not immediately return to its "normal course".

President Emmanuel Macron also said in a newspaper interview Sunday that he would pull out French troops helping to fight jihadist insurgents in Mali if its military leaders showed any tolerance for "radical Islamism".

Mali's new self-appointed president is Colonel Assimi Goita, who led the young army officers who overthrew Mali's elected president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita last August.

On May 24, Goita orchestrated the ouster of president Bah Ndaw and prime minister Moctar Ouane, raising doubts about his commitment to holding elections next year as promised.