France seeks return of constitutional order in Mali

France has pressed Mali’s coup leader for a return to constitutional order and elections to be held as planned in its former colony, Cooperation Minister Henri de Raincourt said Sunday. Amadou Sanogo, a captain who led the putsch that unseated President Amadou Toumani Toure on Wednesday, has “not yet responded” to the demands conveyed via France’s ambassador over the weekend, the minister told French television. De Raincourt said France had not yet managed to contact Toure, whom he insisted remained the president of Mali in Paris’ eyes. Ambassador Christin Rouyer told the coup leader on Saturday that “a return to constitutional order is an absolute imperative, and that Mali must keep to the constitutional election calendar”, which determines that a presidential vote be held by June 8 at the latest, the minister said. France had also urged the coup leader to re-open of all borders as soon as possible, allowing the delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid to the drought-stricken region.