The Trump administration’s track record of backing Israeli belligerence is all proof that the US exercises the very brand of terrorism that it claims it wants to extinguish through cooperation with Mali.

For the Trump administration to open up intelligence-sharing with the junta, such an approach sends a powerful message that the United States – first and foremost – is focused on advancing its fight against “extremist” forces by partnering with regimes that have practiced it themselves. Mali is no outlier when it comes to human rights violations: the regime has advanced extreme legislation that has eclipsed civil liberties, and rights abuses saw a 120 percent increase in recent years.

Where are loud US pronouncements about staying clear of regimes that do not fit the US definition of a democratic system? The fact is that the US itself has been a vocal promoter of terrorism on foreign soil: nearly two decades of Afghanistan’s occupation, the US role in sustaining the Taliban’s power, and its brazen support for “Israel’s” raging genocide – all make it a key figure in creating the unrest that it claims to counter through intelligence-sharing with Mali.