Bamako, Jul 15 (IANS): The Malian government has decided to suspend all rotations of military and police contingents of MINUSMA, the UN peacekeeping mission in Mali.

"For reasons related to the national security context, the government of Mali has decided to suspend, as of today, all rotations of the military and police contingent of MINUSMA, including those already scheduled or announced," said the Malian foreign ministry in a letter to the UN mission in Mali on Thursday.

Mali is planning a coordination meeting with MINUSMA to identify a "permanent optimal plan" to facilitate "coordination and regulation" of the rotations of contingents operating within the UN mission. The date for this meeting has yet to be set, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Malian government said that it will work "diligently" to create conditions conducive to the lifting of this suspension of rotation, which is an essential step in enabling the deployed contingents to ensure the proper implementation of MINUSMA's mandate.