US Deputy Secretary Frank Garcia meets Mali’s foreign minister on cooperation and Sahel ICC withdrawals

On 17 July 2026, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State for African Affairs Frank Garcia met with Mali’s Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop in Bamako. The two officials reviewed priority areas of bilateral cooperation, stressing the expansion of economic, commercial and human exchanges, as well as productive investments and joint security efforts against terrorism in the Sahel.

Garcia praised the decision by Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger—members of the Sahel Alliance—to withdraw from the International Criminal Court, describing the Court as practicing selective justice. The United States reaffirmed its intention to maintain security and other forms of cooperation with the three countries despite their ICC withdrawal, which was announced in September 2025, formally notified in June 2026 and will become effective one year after notification.