Nigeria is expecting 10 attack helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and other military equipment to improve its ability to respond to emerging security threats, Minister of Defence, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (retd.), has said. He disclosed this in Abuja while receiving the European Union Ambassador to Nigeria and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), Gautier Mignot, and his delegation at Ship House.
The meeting centred on defence agreements and a review of security cooperation between Nigeria and the European Union, alongside a proposed €20 million assistance package for the Armed Forces of Nigeria under the European Peace Facility. In a statement issued by Leah Katung-Babatunde, Special Assistant on Media to the Minister, Mignot commended Nigeria’s defence leadership and invited Musa to attend a meeting of defence ministers in Brussels later in the year.
Musa identified the shrinking Lake Chad Basin, which more than 50 million people depend on, as a potential source of instability. He said preventing terrorists from accessing their strongholds on islands in the lake remained a key operational priority for the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF). The minister also thanked the EU for its continued support and reaffirmed President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to protecting lives and property and promoting national development.
The defence minister said relative peace was gradually returning to some parts of the country through the efforts of the Armed Forces and other security agencies. However, he acknowledged that kidnappings along major highways and attacks on isolated communities continued, noting that security agencies were working to address the threats. On the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) programme, Musa stressed that its implementation should give priority to victims of the conflict, including affected military personnel.
Mignot announced that an EU technical delegation would visit Abuja in November to agree on the details for delivering the proposed assistance. He also commended a recent conference involving former and serving MNJTF force commanders, which was attended by representatives of the African Union and the Lake Chad Basin Commission. The proposed EU support is expected to form part of the ongoing security cooperation between Nigeria and the bloc.
