11th EUTM Mali (European Union Training Mission)

Last November, in 2017, it took place the relay of the Spanish contingent in the EUTM Mali, the training mission of its Army that maintains the European Union.
EUTM-Mali provides to the Malian Army military training and advising in the command and control systems, logistics and management of Human resources, together with the international humanitarian right.
The 11th EUTM-Mali is formed by a contingent, in its majority belonging to the Brigade of the Spanish Legion. Since the 31st of January, the Spanish general Enrique Millán is the responsible of the EU's Training Mission in Mali (EUTM-Mali). This is the second time that Spain assumes the command of this mission.
Currently, in the Operations Zone at the Multinational Headquarters (MHQ) of the mission and at the Advisory Task Force (ATF) in Bamako, as well as in the Training Task Force (TTF), the deployed units are the Mixed Company of protection (ESP-BEL), and Instructors teams of the Special Operations, with personnel of the Command of Special Operations, and of Artillery and Morters, in Koulikoro. Finally, it has been added a Spanish Officer in the Strategic Cell of Bruselas for the coordination to the highest level of this operation.
Spain participates in the mission of the European Union "EUTM-Mali" since April 2013, whose first contingent was formed by 50 effectives. Subsequently, after the agreement of the Council of Minister the 7th of June of that same year, there was an increase of effectives until 110, due to a bigger Spanish involvement in formation and training.
With the authorization of the Congress of Deputies the 24th of January, Spain will be still the country with more effectives in the 'EUTM-Mali' mission, which will raise a maximum of 292 effectives, in order to guarantee the associated capacities to the commitments of the command's operation, the force of protection and the decentralized training.
The Spanish contingent stationed in Mali is distributed in between the cities of Bamako -where the mission's staff is placed- and Koulikoro, where the body of personnel dedicated to the military training of the Malian soldiers and the protection of the force are placed, although the advising and training activities have been extended to other areas of Mali.
During 2017, 451 Spanish soldiers participated in the mission, most of them from the Spanish Army, who trained 2.100 Malian soldiers from the 11.500 instructed by the mission's personnel.

EUTM-Mali European Union's mission
The commitment of the EUTM-Mali mission-approved by the European Union in January 2013- is not executive; that is to say, the soldiers who form it do not participate in the combat activities and either do they accompany the Malian units in their operations, but they provide formation, advice and training to the Armed Forces of Mali to contribute in the restoration, under civil authority, of the territorial integrity of the country.
The current mandate finishes next 18th of May in 2018 and there is already a process of extending a new one until 2020. Furthermore, from the current tasks, it is expected the fact that the new mandate will contemplate the support to the 'G5-Sahel', with the Joint Force of Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger.
Currently, 'EUTM-Mali' is formed by 581 soldiers from 28 countries, from which 22 belong to the European Union, five are not from the EU and one is African.