The Federal Government says Nigeria and the United States have agreed on a renewed partnership aimed at tackling the country’s long-running security challenges.
This follows a series of high-level engagements in Washington, D.C., where a Nigerian delegation led by the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, met with senior officials from the U.S. Congress, the White House Faith Office, the State Department, the National Security Council and the Department of War. The talks focused on recent allegations of Christian genocide in Nigeria and broader security concerns.
According to President Bola Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the discussions marked a significant step toward strengthening security ties between both nations.
Onanuga explained that the delegation firmly rejected claims of genocide, stressing that violent attacks in Nigeria cut across all religious and ethnic groups. He said the officials warned that misrepresenting the conflict could deepen national divisions and obscure the true nature of the crisis.
He added that the outcome of the meetings has opened fresh channels for collaboration aimed at improving the protection of Nigerian citizens.
Following the engagements, the U.S. government expressed readiness to bolster support for Nigeria, including enhanced intelligence sharing, faster processing of defence equipment requests, and possible allocation of excess defence hardware to aid ongoing operations against terrorists and violent extremist groups.
Washington also signalled willingness to provide humanitarian aid to communities affected by violence in the Middle Belt, as well as technical assistance to strengthen early-warning systems.
Both countries agreed to immediately begin implementing a non-binding cooperation framework and to set up a Joint Working Group to coordinate the new areas of collaboration.
In return, the Nigerian delegation reaffirmed the government’s commitment to improving civilian protection amid ongoing security operations.
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