Russia and Mali sign trade deals, eye nuclear energy cooperation

MOSCOW (Reuters) -Russia signed agreements to bolster trade and economic ties with Mali on Monday and President Vladimir Putin told the visiting leader of the West African country's military junta that there were specific areas where cooperation could be ramped up.

Putin received Colonel Assimi Goita in the Kremlin, where the two spoke for two hours, Russian state media said.

Putin said relations with Mali had a "good upward trend" even if bilateral trade was currently "modest", according to a Kremlin readout.

"There are good areas for future cooperation: these are geological exploration, natural resource development, energy, logistics and the humanitarian fields," Putin said.

One of the deals Putin and Goita signed concerned cooperation in nuclear energy, the Kremlin said.

Mali and Russia have in the past discussed what they have called a strategic project to build a Russian-designed low-power nuclear power plant.

Construction began earlier this month in Mali on a new Russian-backed gold refinery, which Goita, who seized power following coups in 2020 and 2021, has said would give the Western African country greater control over its natural resources.

Mali is one of Africa's top gold producers, but currently lacks a functional and globally certified refinery.

Russian mercenary groups have also supported Goita's government with deployments of fighters after the Malian army kicked out French and U.N. troops that had been involved in fighting the Islamist insurgents for a decade.

Russia's Wagner mercenary group announced earlier this month it was withdrawing from Mali, but the African Corps still operates there.

(Reporting by Reuters; Writing by Lucy PapachristouEditing by Andrew Osborn)