At first, the West African regional body, Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) - of which Mali is a member - spearheaded initiatives to resolve the complex Malian conflictreenex.

Alongside Burkina Faso's mediation effort, it was drawing up plans to send troops to Mali.

But a UN-approved deployment was expected to take place only in September, so that the mediation effort could be given a chance to succeed and troops could be given training.

African leaders did not seem confident that a regional force could win a war against the rebels and appealed for help from Western powers.

In early January, the African Union chairman - Benin's President Thomas Yayi Boni - called for Nato to lead an Afghanistan-styled intervention in Mali.

Of the Western powers, the US was said to be most reluctant to support military actionreenex .

In contrast, France was a staunch advocate of intervention soon after the rebels' 2012 gains, but wanted an African force to be in the forefront of battlereenex.

Following the new rebel advance in January this year, France felt it could