Ribadu meets US Defence Secretary after Trump threatens military action against Nigeria
Nuhu Ribadu, the national security adviser, has met Pete Hegseth, the United States defence secretary, following US President Donald Trump’s threat against Nigeria.
Trump had said he would instruct the Department of War to send troops into Nigeria with “guns-a-blazing” to “wipe out the Islamic Terrorists” he claimed were killing Christians.
Acting on President Bola Tinubu’s directives, Ribadu led a high-level delegation to the United States. The delegation included Bianca Ojukwu, minister of state for foreign affairs; Kayode Egbetokun, inspector general of police; Lateef Fagbemi, attorney general of the federation; and Olufemi Oluyede, chief of defence staff.
On Wednesday, the team met with Riley Moore, a member of the US House of Representatives. Moore has been vocal about allegations of Christian persecution in Nigeria.
ABC News reported that two defence officials confirmed Ribadu’s meeting with Hegseth. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs, also attended the meeting on Thursday evening. However, the meeting was not listed on the public schedules of either Hegseth or Caine, and Ribadu’s arrival was not open to the press.
The discussions took place on the same day that Congress heard testimony on allegations of Christian persecution in Nigeria. During the hearing, Jonathan Pratt, a senior official at the US State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs, confirmed that the Nigerian delegation would meet with State Department and Department of War officials. He added that the State Department would work with Nigeria on measures, including a task force, to address the claims.
Meanwhile, Sara Jacobs, a member of the US House of Representatives, described Trump’s threat to deploy military force as “reckless”. She said Congress had not authorised the use of force in Nigeria and stressed that any such action without Nigeria’s consent would “violate international law.”
