BAMAKO, June 17 (Al Jazeera) - Mali has called on the United Nations to withdraw its peacekeeping mission from the country “without delay,” denouncing its “failure” to respond to security challenges.

Foreign Minister Abdoulaye Diop, who is part of Mali’s interim military authorities, told a UN Security Council meeting on Friday that the peacekeeping force known as MINUSMA should withdraw its troops from the West African nation.

El Ghassim Wane, the head of the UN mission in Mali, said after the meeting of the 15-member council that conducting UN peacekeeping operations was “nearly impossible” without the consent of the host country.

“It’s a decision that the council has to make,” he told reporters. “But the point I’m making, and I believe it’s a point that everyone agrees on, is that peacekeeping is based on the principle of consent from the host country and absent that consent, of course, operations are nearly impossible.”

Al Jazeera’s Kristen Saloomey said that the mandate for the mission is due to expire at the end of the month.

“The foreign minister had expressed concern that the UN had been in the country for 10 years and the violence and insecurity it was sent there to stop had only gotten worse,” she said, reporting from UN headquarters in New York City.

“He said this has resulted in a crisis of confidence for the Malian people. There have been protests in Mali calling on UN peacekeepers to leave.”

UN Security Council members must adopt a resolution to extend MINUSMA’s mandate by June 30. That requires at least nine votes in favour and no vetoes by Russia, China, the United States, United Kingdom or France to pass.