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| - Mali's Colonel Assimi Goita promised Monday that the government would "uphold all its commitments," after being sworn in as the Sahel state's transitional president. In a ceremony in the capital Bamako, he also pledged to stage "credible, fair and transparent elections". The swearing in came after Goita ousted the civilian president and prime minister of a transitional government on May 24, to international condemnation. But the ousted leaders were themselves installed in the wake of an earlier coup last August, led by Goita, which deposed elected president Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. The second putsch in nine months has sparked diplomatic uproar, but also raised concerns about the army's commitment to eventually handing power back to civilians. The transition government had previously pledged to hold a constitutional referendum in October, and stage elections in February next year. Goita on Monday said he planned to hold the elections "on the scheduled dates". "I would like to reassure the sub-regional and regional organisations and the international community in general that Mali will honour all its commitments for and in the best interests of the nation," the colonel said. The latest coup prompted the African Union and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) to suspend Mali. France has also suspended joint military operations with Malian forces, and stopped giving military advice. The former colonial power has thousands of troops stationed in the semi-arid Sahel to help fight jihadist violence that erupted in Mali in 2012 and now threatens the region. Maintaining its international partnerships, not least with France, is crucial for Mali, one of the world's poorest countries and whose security forces are thinly resourced. Monday's ceremony is expected to clear the path towards appointing a civilian prime minister -- a key international demand. bur-lal/eml/dl
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