A senior United States military official has confirmed that Washington has sent a small military team to Nigeria, signaling a deeper security partnership between the two nations amid ongoing jihadist attacks.
On Tuesday, February 3, Dagvin Anderson, commander of United States Africa Command (Africom), said the deployment followed fresh discussions with Nigerian leaders on strategies to address insecurity.
His remarks came weeks after the US carried out air strikes on militant positions in Nigeria on December 25, an operation ordered under former President Donald Trump’s administration.
“We agreed that we needed to work together on the way forward in the region,” Anderson said during a virtual press briefing. “That has led to increased collaboration between our nations, including a small US team that brings some unique capabilities to augment what Nigeria has been doing for several years.”
Anderson did not reveal the team’s size or the exact tasks it will handle.
Strikes and expanding cooperation
US military officials noted that the recent partnership includes more intelligence sharing and equipment support as Nigeria fights Islamist armed groups across multiple regions.
Africom confirmed last month that the December strikes targeted Islamic State-linked fighters in Sokoto State in north-west Nigeria. According to the command, US support will focus on both the north-west and north-east, where Boko Haram and its offshoot, Islamic State West Africa Province, have carried out attacks for nearly twenty years.
‘Genocide’ claim disputed
The wider cooperation comes amid controversial statements by Trump, who said there is a “genocide” of Christians in Nigeria. The Nigerian government and several analysts have rejected this, noting that the country’s security crises affect Christians and Muslims alike, often without distinction.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous country, is generally divided between a Christian-majority south and a Muslim-majority north, with violence fueled by jihadist insurgency, banditry, and local conflicts.
US officials emphasized that the new deployment aims to support Nigeria’s ongoing efforts rather than replace them, as both nations work to contain extremist violence across the region.
