Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the implications of the decision by the government of France to withdraw more than 2000 troops from the Sahel for the British forces sent to Mali last year, including any plans to (1) increase the UK presence, or to (2) withdraw our military presence.

The UK is in contact with our French partners on their planned changes to operations in the Sahel; we have had assurances France will retain the key enablers which allow the UK to effectively contribute to operations in the Sahel. Through our recent deployment to the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali (MINUSMA), and our programmatic support for stabilisation and conflict resolution, the UK is committed to building peace and stability in the Sahel. We also use our humanitarian assistance to support those most affected by conflict. While military commitments remain under constant review, there are no plans to change the UK presence in the Sahel at this time.