Mali military leader Goita emerges as Russia declares it halted coup

First sighting of Goita since rebel attacks comes as Russia seeks to dampen speculation over ally’s military government.Mali’s military leader Assimi Goita has met the Russian ambassador to the East African country, according to his office.Goita’s office published photos of the meeting on Tuesday in what was his first public appearance since rebel attacks over the weekend that killed one of his ministers.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemslist 1 of 4Rival armed groups join forces against the Malian state: What next?list 2 of 4Timeline: How Mali went from democracy beacon to instabilitylist 3 of 4What’s driving the coordinated attacks across Mali?list 4 of 4What is the Azawad Liberation Front, part of the Mali attacks?end of listThe news release came after Russia said earlier in the day that it was seeking stability in the West African country. , in which it has won significant influence since Goita’s military government took power in a coup in 2021.West Africa’s al-Qaeda affiliate and the Tuareg separatist group on Saturday hit Mali’s main army base and the area near Bamako’s airport, while driving Russian soldiers – deployed in support of government forces – out of Kidal in the north.No statement accompanied the photos of Goita’s meeting with Russian Ambassador Igor Gromyko, but the image “speaks louder than words” of the regime’s reliance on “Russian mercenaries”, said Al Jazeera’s Nicolas Haque, who has reported extensively from Mali.‘Peace and stability’The same day, the Russian Ministry of Defence issued a statement declaring that its paramilitary forces had ‌‌helped prevent a coup during the attacks on Saturday, stopping rebel fighters from seizing key objects, including the presidential palace.“In fierce battles with overwhelming enemy forces, the units of the Africa Corps inflicted irreparable losses on the enemy in personnel and hardware, forcing [them] to abandon [their] plans and preventing [them] from carrying out the coup d’etat, retaining the authority of the legitimate government, and preventing mass civilian casualties,” the statement read.The Ministry of Defence also confirmed that mercenaries from Russia’s Africa Corps, controlled by Moscow and sent to back up the Malian government, had been forced to withdraw from the key northern town of Kidal.