Is Europe's Need For Uranium The Reason Why They Intervened In Mali?

Map: Location of uranium exploration area in Niger. Spiegel Online

Is Our Fear Of Dirty Bombs Leading Us To Disaster In Mali? -- Alexander Pannett, Tory Reform Group

The crisis in Mali has reached new heights with the announcement that the UK will be sending 350 troops to the region.

The task of the soldiers is to train the Malian army and their deployment is seen as signaling a more long-term commitment to the region by the UK.

The use of soldiers is an escalation of the UK’s support for France, which had previously been solely logistical with the provision of two RAF transport planes. It inevitably raises fears of mission creep at a time of severe cutbacks to the UK defence budget.

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My Comment: There is probably some truth to this story .... Niger is a critical supplier of uranium for Europe's energy needs. A good report on how important this industry is was done by Spiegel two years ago, and even in that report it comments on the growing conflict between the Tuareg nomads in the region, and the Niger/European companies that want to exploit the region's resources. That link is here.