ABUJA, Nigeria — Nigeria has said it would welcome United States assistance in combating Islamist insurgents but cautioned that any intervention must respect its territorial integrity, following remarks by former U.S. President Donald Trump suggesting possible military action against the West African nation.
Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Saturday that he had directed the Pentagon to prepare for “fast” military action in Nigeria over what he described as “the killing of very large numbers of Christians.” The statement sparked diplomatic concern in Abuja, with Nigerian officials quickly moving to clarify their position.
“We welcome U.S. assistance as long as it recognises our territorial integrity,” said Daniel Bwala, an adviser to President Bola Tinubu, in an interview with Reuters on Sunday.
Bwala downplayed the former U.S. president’s threat, describing it as rhetoric rather than a formal policy stance. “We don’t take it literally, because we know Donald Trump thinks well of Nigeria,” he said. “By the time these two leaders meet and sit, there would be better outcomes in our joint resolve to fight terrorism.”
Trump’s comments came a day after Washington reinstated Nigeria on its “Countries of Particular Concern” list — a classification for states accused of violating religious freedoms, alongside China, Russia, and Pakistan.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation with over 200 million people, is sharply divided along religious and ethnic lines — with a predominantly Muslim north and a largely Christian south.
For more than 15 years, militant groups such as Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) have carried out deadly attacks, particularly in the northeast.
While international observers have reported killings of Christians, analysts say the vast majority of victims of jihadist violence are Muslims. “Insurgent groups such as Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa often present their campaigns as anti-Christian, but in practice their violence is indiscriminate and devastates entire communities,” said Ladd Serwat, senior Africa analyst at the U.S.-based Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED).
ACLED data shows that of nearly 1,923 attacks on civilians in Nigeria this year, only about 50 were religiously motivated against Christians — contradicting exaggerated claims circulating in right-wing U.S. circles that over 100,000 Christians have been killed since 2009.
Bwala reaffirmed Nigeria’s position that “there is no Christian genocide,” adding that the government does not discriminate based on religion or ethnicity in its counterterrorism operations.
President Tinubu, a Muslim married to a Christian pastor, has publicly rejected accusations of religious intolerance. He has continued a long-standing policy of balancing key government and military appointments between Christians and Muslims. Last week, Tinubu appointed a Christian as the new Chief of Defence Staff in what analysts see as an effort to promote inclusivity.
In Abuja, however, some Christian worshippers expressed cautious support for U.S. involvement. “If Donald Trump said they want to come in, they should come in, and there is nothing wrong with that,” said businesswoman Juliet Sur outside a Sunday Mass service.
Security experts warn that any U.S. air strikes would face operational challenges, given the wide geographic spread of militant networks across Nigeria’s northeastern and central regions. The U.S. also withdrew its military forces from neighbouring Niger in 2024, reducing its ability to project force in the Sahel region.
“The militant groups operate fluidly across borders with Chad, Cameroon, and Niger,” said one defence analyst, noting that “any effective U.S. operation would still rely heavily on cooperation with the Nigerian government, which Trump has simultaneously threatened to cut off.”
Nigeria’s measured response reflects its delicate balancing act — welcoming international support while asserting sovereignty — as it continues to battle one of Africa’s most complex and protracted insurgencies.
