According to a U.S. official who spoke to media outlets on Tuesday, the Pentagon will send about 200 troops to Nigeria within the next few weeks to train the Nigerian military in counter-terrorism tactics.
The official said a small group of U.S. forces has already been in Nigeria since last month, helping local forces to pinpoint terrorist targets for counter-terrorism operations. The impending deployment of 200 more American soldiers will help to expand that intelligence operation across the country, in addition to providing strategic and technical advice.
Both American and Nigerian officials said the U.S. troops will not be involved in combat.
“The terrorist activity in West Africa — and Nigeria specifically — is something we’re incredibly concerned with. We want to partner with capable and willing partners that are able to address these shared security concerns,” said a spokesperson for U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM).
Nigerian armed forces spokesman Maj. Gen. Samaila Uba said the additional U.S. troops were requested by the Nigerian government.
Observers have suspected some U.S. operators were on the ground in Nigeria ever since America launched missile strikes against Islamic State-affiliated militants on Christmas Day. The official who spoke on Tuesday provided the first confirmation that American forces were present in Nigeria.
Nigeria has had a tumultuous relationship with the second Trump administration, beginning with President Donald Trump’s allegations that President Bola Tinubu and the Nigerian military were not doing enough to protect Christians from attacks by Islamist extremists – a complaint human rights groups had been leveling at Nigeria for years beforehand.
Tinubu rejected Trump’s criticism, essentially arguing that Nigeria is overrun with bandits and extremists who prey upon Christians and Muslims with equal enthusiasm. Even as he made these defenses, Tinubu became increasingly cooperative with U.S. counter-terrorism efforts, possibly because he faced mounting domestic criticism amid waves of kidnapping and murder, which has often wiped out entire villages.
“The U.S.-Nigeria relationship is among the most important in sub-Saharan Africa, given Nigeria’s status as Africa’s most populous country, largest economy, and our shared democratic values,” the State Department said last month when highlighting the close security cooperation between the two countries.
The State Department was especially eager to tout the extraordinary amount of assistance the United States provides to Nigeria for military education and training, including counter-terrorism partnerships.
The leftist publication New York Times (NYT) noted on Tuesday that despite the perpetually encouraging diplomatic rhetoric, U.S. military leaders have long “complained about prickly relations with the Nigerian military” – but the Nigerians became considerably more receptive to intelligence sharing, joint military planning, and additional training after Trump’s clashes with Tinubu.
Read the full article here