France to 'adapt' Mali mission as ties with junta fray

France and its European partners "cannot stay with things the way they are" in Mali after the military junta expelled a contingent of Danish troops, Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said on Friday.

"Given this situation, the breaking of the political framework and the military framework (in Mali), we cannot stay with things the way they are," Le Drian told a radio.

He complained of growing "obstacles" placed in the way of European and international forces deployed to fight a jihadist insurgency in the West African country that has spread through the Sahel.

But Le Drian added that relations between Bamako and European nations had turned sour and would not say whether Paris was considering withdrawing its Barkhane mission altogether.

"It's not just a French decision, it's a collective one, and we've opened talks with our African and European partners to see how we can adapt our deployment to the new situation," he said, flanked by visiting Dutch Foreign Minister Wopke Hoekstra.

Hoekstra agreed that "we are looking for a joint approach".

Mali's Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop said: "Mali will not exclude anything from these issues if it does not take our interests into account."

Diop said that asking for the departure of French troops from Mali "is not on the table for the moment", adding that if ever that presence "is deemed contrary to the interests of Mali, we will not hesitate to assume our responsibilities".

After repeated demands from Mali's military government, Denmark announced Thursday it would withdraw its newly deployed contingent of around 100 troops.

The junta, which came to power in a coup in August 2020, first asked Denmark to withdraw its forces on Monday, following a deployment it said had been undertaken without consent.

Following a meeting with 15 counterparts from European nations deployed in West Africa on Friday, Denmark's Defence Minister Trine Bramsen said they would decide on their next action in two weeks.