ABSTRACT
Mali attempted to make a clear break with its old colonial master, a strategy that ultimately failed. In dramatic contrast to some of its neighbors, such as Senegal, Upper Volta, Niger, and the Ivory Coast, Mali quickly Africanized all government services, so that only a small handful of French advisers remained in place. Whereas a number of Mali's neighbors restricted their inter-African relationships during the 1960s to their own region and to other francophone African countries, Mali cast a wider net. Even for Mali, the most important relationships remain regional in character. Mali shares borders with seven countries, and its dealings with some of them have at times been difficult. Mali's most difficult relations have been with Burkina Faso. These have focused on a border dispute in the region known as the Agacher or the Udalan, which measures some 100 miles long and twelve miles deep.
