Nigeria has said it would welcome U.S. assistance in tackling Islamist insurgents, provided the country’s territorial integrity is respected. The statement came after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened military action against Nigeria over what he described as the “killing of Christians.”
Trump claimed he had instructed the U.S. Defense Department to prepare for “fast” action if Nigeria failed to address the issue. Speaking aboard Air Force One, he suggested that Washington could deploy troops or launch air strikes, though he did not elaborate further.
Daniel Bwala, an adviser to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, responded by saying that Nigeria remains open to cooperation but would not compromise its sovereignty. “We welcome U.S. assistance as long as it recognises our territorial integrity,” Bwala told Reuters, adding that the government does not discriminate on religious grounds in its fight against insecurity.
Nigeria has battled Islamist groups such as Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) for over 15 years. These insurgents have killed thousands, primarily in the country’s northeast. While Christians have been targeted, analysts say most victims have been Muslims, and the violence often stems from broader political, ethnic, and land disputes rather than religious persecution.
According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED), only 50 out of 1,923 attacks on civilians this year were explicitly motivated by religion. Claims circulating in U.S. right-wing circles that 100,000 Christians have been killed in Nigeria since 2009 are not supported by evidence.
President Tinubu, a Muslim married to a Christian pastor, has rejected allegations of religious intolerance. His administration recently appointed a Christian as the new defence chief, part of efforts to balance religious representation in government.
While some Nigerian Christians have voiced support for U.S. intervention, officials in Abuja stress that the nation’s security challenges are multifaceted and must be addressed without external infringement on Nigeria’s sovereignty.
