The ECOWAS commission has told the defense chiefs to ready a 3,000-person standby force for Mali.
Commissioner Suleiman said that although ECOWAS has agreed to deploy troops to Mali only at the request of the transitional government, ECOWAS protocols allow it to intervene in a conflict that "threatens the security of the sub-region." ...
Tuareg rebels and Islamist militants took control of northern Mali in the chaos following the March 21st coup. West African leaders have expressed concern that the crisis is a danger to regional security.
God help us, but we need France to intervene here to prevent northern Mali from becoming a threat to regional security. Even if the 3,000-man ECOWAS force can restore democratic rule in Mali's seat of government in the south, I find it hard to believe either it or the remnants of Mali forces could then mount a drive north to defeat and scatter the Tuaregs and jihadis.
Socialist or not, I think France is the only one to do the job.
