Moscow expects that the upcoming results of the presidential election held in Mali will contribute to the restoration of peace and national reconciliation in the country, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Monday in a statement.
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th August, 2018) Moscow expects that the upcoming results of the presidential election held in Mali will contribute to the restoration of peace and national reconciliation in the country, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Monday in a statement.
On Sunday, Mali held the second round of the presidential vote contested between incumbent President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita and Soumaila Cisse, representing the Union for the Republic and Democracy.
"We expect that the results of the elections will serve the cause of restoring peace and achieving national reconciliation in Mali, will allow the Malian society to continue moving forward along the way of stable and democratic development, will help to more effectively counter the terrorist threat in the Sahara-Sahel region as a whole," the statement reads.
The first round of the election was held on July 29. The situation in the country between the two rounds was marred by some incidents. On July 31, a group transporting election materials in Segou area was attacked, leaving four soldiers and eight attackers dead.
Last week, the United Nations issued a report accusing Malian security forces of killing civilians during their anti-terrorist operations against Islamist groups. The government has already acknowledged that its forces were linked to the killings.
