Finally, US Deploys Military Team to Nigeria in New Security Partnership
The United States has confirmed the deployment of a small team of military personnel to Nigeria, marking a new phase in security cooperation between both countries.
The development was disclosed on Tuesday by General Dagvin Anderson, Commander of the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM), during a press briefing.
This is the first official acknowledgement of US troops on Nigerian soil since the Donald Trump administration authorized missile strikes against terrorist targets in Sokoto State on Christmas Day.
General Anderson said the deployment followed high-level engagements, including a meeting with President Bola Tinubu in Rome late last year, which paved the way for deeper bilateral collaboration.
“That has led to increased collaboration between our nations, to include a small US team that brings some unique capabilities from the United States in order to augment what Nigeria has been doing for several years,” Anderson said.
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He did not disclose the size of the team or specify the nature of its operations. The timeline of the deployment also remains unclear.
In recent weeks, Allison Hooker, the US Under Secretary of State, led a delegation comprising officials from eight federal agencies to Abuja for a bilateral working group meeting with Nigerian security authorities. The Nigerian delegation was led by Nuhu Ribadu, the National Security Adviser (NSA).
The meeting followed Washington’s redesignation of Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) over security and human rights issues.
President Trump had previously warned of the possibility of direct military intervention, stating that US forces could be sent to Nigeria “guns-a-blazing” to confront terrorist groups targeting Christian communities.
On December 25, US forces carried out airstrikes on two suspected terrorist enclaves in the Bauni Forest, Tangaza Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
Efforts to obtain official reaction from Nigeria’s Ministry of Defence were ongoing at the time of filing this report.
By PRNigeria
