[Ticker] EU to reduce size and scope of Mali military mission

The EU is to keep in place its military training mission in Mali, but reduce its 1,000-strong number of staff and change its tasks from training Malian rank-and-file soldiers to "high-level" advice for Malian commanders and those in Burkina Faso and Niger, EU defence ministers agreed Tuesday. The move comes due to "an increasing pattern of collusion and allegations of grave human rights abuses" by Malian soldiers and Russian mercenaries.