French military intervention in Mali entered its seventh day on Thursday. Given the stark contrast between the military prowess of the French forces and the disorderly extremists, the world should not wait too long before Paris declares victory in the West African country.

French President Francois Hollande has vowed to destroy the "terrorists" in Mali, and he is not alone, as a number of Western and African countries have thrown their weight behind him. That there was a proper excuse for the intervention is beyond question, as he was invited by the Malian government to put down the rebels and believed to have the backing of the United Nations too.

Despite warning of the remote possibility that France might become mired in Mali, Hollande, as the first Socialist head of state in France since 1995, has put himself and his country in the spotlight, and won himself more clout on the diplomatic front, which will bolster French influence on the world arena