International records / Foreign Relations of the United States

23. Paper Prepared by the National Security Council Staff

27 . —The French have residual influence in Mali; they could be asked to convey their concern that Mali not become a staging area for Soviet activities in Central and Southern Africa. —Most useful might be approaches by other Africans (Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Ghana, Zaire) along the same lines. We could inspire these. Whoever makes the approaches they would obviously have to be cast in general terms—e.g., on the undesirability of great power military involvement in Africa. Mali is not guilty of anything and perhaps has no intention of obliging the Soviets in this regard. Still, it might be usefu…