The authorities in Bamako on Sunday expressed their desire to see Mauritania getting more involved in the resolution of the crisis in Northern Mali.

The appeal was made in Nouakchott by Mali's Prime Minister Diango Cissoko after a meeting with the Mauritanian president.

"Mali's President Dioncounda Traore sent me to come and thank the Mauritanian president for all that he has done to ensure that peace is restored in Mali and to also urge Mauritania to get more involved in the efforts to resolve the crisis in the North of Mali, " the prime minister said.

"You know that Mauritania is a country with which we share the longest border. She is also strongly involved in the resolution of the problems that Mali is currently confronted with," he said after the meeting.

"I have learnt that the president has a clear vision of the problem in Mali. He is well informed and he has noble intentions of helping us end the crisis soon," Cissoko told the media before boarding his plane back to Bamako.

Recently, Mauritania affirmed that its troops will not take part in the offensive that is being prepared to dislodge the islamists who have occupied the Northern part of Mali.

On Saturday, when the Malian prime minister arrived in Nouakchott, security sources in the Mauritanian capital announced that tens of fighters of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA) who are occupying part of Northern Mali, "had surrendered their weapons and luggage" to the Mauritanian forces at Bassiknou near the border with Mali.

The exact number of fighters was not given, but the sources said that they handed over 25 vehicles with heavy weapons, light arms and munitions of different calibre.