A vote by the Security Council to end a UN forces mission in Mali, at the country's own request, was postponed to later this week due to ongoing talks, diplomatic sources revealed on Tuesday, as per AFP.

Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop on June 16 asked the UN to withdraw its MINUSMA force immediately.

While the consent of the host state is one of the principles of keeping UN forces in it, diplomatic sources pointed to a resolution drafted by France that proposes providing a period of six months for the withdrawal of the more than 12,000 soldiers and police deployed in the West African nation.

One of the diplomatic sources indicated that due to continuing discussions between members of the Council, the UN, and Mali, a vote scheduled for Thursday was postponed to Friday, the last day of the current mandate of Minusma.

Mali had asked to shorten this six-month period, another diplomatic source told AFP. But UN officials argue that a shorter time would make the withdrawal more difficult.

"Any effort to move thousands of peacekeepers, including all their equipment, all their facilities, all their supporting staff takes a period of time," Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General claimed on Monday, asking for what he called a "reasonable timetable".

The United States, which said it regretted the Malian decision, also called for an "orderly and responsible withdrawal."

The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali, or MINUSMA, was created in 2013, under the pretext of countering terrorism, taking over from an African-led mission.

It has been criticized for its inability to protect civilians from terrorist attacks, despite deploying a sizeable force and having an annual budget of $1.26 billion.

Mali has been under military rule since an August 2020 coup -- and has been battling a security crisis since insurgencies broke out in the north in 2012. 

The country's military junta has increasingly imposed operational restrictions on UN forces and broken Mali's longstanding alliance with former colonial power France.

Following pressure from the Malian government and people, French troops withdrew from the country on August 15, 2022

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