Mali wants its partnership with Türkiye to move beyond buying weapons, towards technology transfer and a domestic defence industry, Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop said in an interview with Anadolu Agency at the BAMEX 2026 defence exhibition in Bamako. “We want to acquire advanced technology and equipment, but we also want technology transfer. We want to work with partners like Türkiye to develop our own capacity,” Diop said, according to Anadolu’s report published on 10 November.
What Diop said
Diop, Mali’s minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, told Anadolu Agency that the transitional government of President Assimi Goïta had made “clear choices” on equipping the security forces, technology transfer and developing a defence industry. He said Mali wants to move “step by step” away from “partnerships that leave us dependent”.
He said defence, security and equipment purchases hold an important place in relations with Ankara, and welcomed what he described as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s and Türkiye’s openness to Mali’s equipment requests. “Today our goal is to go beyond the military field and develop economic, commercial and industrial cooperation with Türkiye based on mutual benefit,” he said, inviting Turkish companies to work in Mali in energy, agriculture and health in particular.
Diop also said Mali regretted Turkish Airlines’ temporary suspension of its Bamako flights and hoped for a decision to resume them soon. On the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), he said the priority in talks with ECOWAS was not a return to the bloc but “two sovereign organisations” coexisting and cooperating, starting with the free movement of people and goods.
The quote circulated on X via the Turkish account @ConflictTR. Its wording matches Anadolu’s interview, which is the primary source.
The setting: BAMEX 2026
Diop spoke on the sidelines of the second Bamako International Defence and Security Exhibition, which opened on 9 November and runs until 13 November at the Bamako Exhibitions Park (FEBAK), according to Times of Defence. The fair is held under the auspices of Mali’s defence ministry and organised by the Turkish firm The Peak Defense. SaharaWire reported exhibitors and delegations from the United States, China, Russia, Germany, Türkiye, Sudan, Niger and Burkina Faso. Diop told Anadolu that the broader attendance this year, compared with the largely Turkish first edition in 2025, sends a message to those who “want to impose an embargo on Mali”.
The organisers frame the fair in the same terms. BAMEX director Harun Saraç has said the aim includes technology transfer, licensing and local assembly rather than equipment sales alone, SaharaWire reported. DefenceMENA’s BAMEX 2026 preview lists the Turkish exhibitors, including Baykar, ASELSAN and ROKETSAN.
Context: Türkiye and Mali’s armed forces
Turkish drones are already central to Mali’s air campaign. In April 2024, at the Türkiye–Mali Joint Economic Commission in Ankara, Diop said Turkish unmanned combat aerial vehicles had been “of great help” to Mali in controlling its territory, Anadolu reported. DefenceMENA has covered the combat record of Mali’s Bayraktar TB2 and Akıncı drones and why Mali expanded its drone fleet.
Diop’s comments do not announce a specific agreement. Neither Anadolu nor the Malian or Turkish governments has published details of any technology-transfer deal, local production line or industrial project linked to BAMEX 2026.
Analysis
The message is aimed at two audiences. For Ankara, Diop is signalling that Bamako wants a deeper relationship than a customer buying finished drones, with local maintenance, assembly or production as the next step. For the Sahel, it fits the AES line on sovereignty and reducing dependence on a single supplier. Diop himself pointed to Russia, China, Türkiye and the United States all being present at the fair.
Technology transfer is harder to deliver than a sale. It needs a skilled workforce, financing and a legal framework. Whether Mali gets more than equipment will depend on contracts that have not yet been announced.
What is not known
- Whether any technology-transfer, licensing or local assembly agreement with a Turkish company has been signed or is under negotiation.
- Which systems Mali wants to produce or maintain locally.
- When Turkish Airlines will resume Bamako flights.
Sources
- Anadolu Agency (Turkish), interview with Abdoulaye Diop at BAMEX 2026, 10 November 2026 (primary source): aa.com.tr
- Anadolu Agency (English), “Turkish combat drones help Mali control its land: Minister”, 18 April 2024: aa.com.tr
- Times of Defence, BAMEX 2026 venue and dates: timesofdefence.com.tr
- SaharaWire, BAMEX 2026 opening: saharawire.com
- SaharaWire, BAMEX and technology transfer: saharawire.com
- @ConflictTR, X post, 10 November 2026 (relays the quote): x.com
Method: the quote shared on X was checked against Anadolu Agency’s original interview. Event details were checked against two further outlets. No government readout of the interview was found.