(MENAFN) France has confirmed that a citizen detained in Mali over an alleged coup plot is an employee of its embassy in Bamako but rejected claims linking him to efforts to overthrow the military-led government, according to reports.

Malian authorities announced last week that they had arrested Yann Vezilier, accusing him of working with French intelligence to rally political figures, civil society leaders, and army officers for “criminal activities aimed at destabilizing” the country.

On Saturday, the French Foreign Ministry dismissed the allegations as “baseless.” It added, “A dialogue is underway [with the Malian authorities] in order to dispel any misunderstanding and obtain the immediate release of this member of the French embassy in Bamako.”

Relations between Mali and France have sharply worsened in recent years, with Bamako and its Sahel allies Niger and Burkina Faso accusing Paris of backing instability. The three governments have since cut military ties with France and sought new partnerships, including with Russia, to confront Islamist insurgents that they say French forces failed to defeat after more than a decade of intervention.

Mali’s Security Minister Daoud Aly Mohammedine said Thursday that an investigation was in progress to identify “possible accomplices” in “subversive acts” involving “foreign states,” following the arrest of Vezilier and several Malian soldiers.

The French Foreign Ministry stressed that the detained national is entitled to protection under the Vienna Convention on diplomatic relations, which grants immunity to diplomats, and renewed its demand for his release.

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