The Polish government Tuesday decided that it will send up to 20 military instructors to Mali as part of an EU mission to train that country’s army, which is waging an offensive against al Qaeda-allied insurgents.

The Polish soldiers’ mission will start Feb. 16 and will last until the end of the year. It will cost around PLN 5.8 million, the government’s press office said.

The mission must be still be approved by Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski. He is expected to give the green light.

European Union officials Jan. 17 announced that EU states would send around 200 military instructors to Mali and around 250 troops to protect them.

France is waging a war in Mali, its former colony, against al Qaeda, which has recently intensified its operations there and in neighboring Algeria.

Some experts have warned this could result in the opening of a new jihad front, this time much closer to Europe than in the case of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Somalia.