France won't cut cultural ties with Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso - minister

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: French Culture Minister Rima Abdul Malak leaves following the weekly cabinet meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, October 26, 2022. REUTERS/Sarah Meyssonnier/File Photo

PARIS (Reuters) - France does not intend to cut cultural ties with Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, the culture minister said on Friday, after entertainment businesses slammed a decision this week to ban all partnerships with artists from these African countries.

"France has always been an open and welcoming nation for artists, so this is not a shift in policy. It's an adaptation to an extremely deteriorated security context," Culture Minister Rima Abdul-Malak told RTL radio.