Nigerian officials in Washington after Trump’s threats of military action over violence against Christians
By Haley Britzky, Jennifer Hansler, CNN
(CNN) — Nigerian officials are meeting with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau this week amid increasing focus from the Trump administration on Christians in Nigeria and as President Donald Trump has floated potential US military action in the country.
Trump said earlier this month he would be designating Nigeria as a country of particular concern over conditions for Christians, saying Christianity is “facing an existential threat” and threatening US military action as a result.
Experts and analysts have cautioned that the situation is far more nuanced, as both Christians and Muslims in Nigeria have come under attack by Islamic extremists. The Nigerian government has rejected claims it is not doing enough to protect Christians, and Nigerian presidential spokesperson told CNN the government was “shocked” that Trump was “mulling an invasion of our country.”
Nigerian National Security Adviser Mallam Nuhu Ribadu is leading the delegation in Washington this week, which is also meeting with members of Congress.
A Pentagon official confirmed Hegseth was meeting with Ribadu on Thursday. Landau will meet with the delegation on Friday, a State Department spokesperson told CNN.
It’s unclear what exactly Hegseth’s meeting will focus on, though sources told CNN there has been a willingness from Nigeria to work with the US military more closely. Hegseth also spoke with the head of US Africa Command, Gen. Dagvin Anderson, on Wednesday, a US official said, though it was also unclear if that conversation was directly related to Hegseth’s meeting on Thursday.
A senior State Department official described the Nigerian delegation as “very high level.”
“We’re committed to having those frank conversations with Nigerian officials,” the official said, noting that labeling Nigeria as a country of particular concern has “gotten the Nigerian officials’ attention.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has spoken with his counterparts in Nigeria, the senior State Department official said, and there are also plans for trips to Nigeria.
“We’re happy to partner with them. We’re not saying good luck. We’re saying, we want to help you make your country safer for religious communities of all stripes, not just Christians, not just Muslims, whoever it may be,” the official said.
And while Nigeria has long had a military-level relationship with the US, some sources indicated Trump’s social media post saying he would send the US “guns-a-blazing” into the West African nation to protect Christians has brought about new urgency to the relationship.
“There is a willingness to work with the US from the Nigerians,” a source familiar with the situation told CNN, “and US Africa Command will clearly and happily work as a partner with whatever African nation is willing to work with the US.”
As the visit to Washington has been underway by the Nigerian officials this week, Mike Waltz, US ambassador to the United Nations, and rapper Nicki Minaj spoke about the “deadly threats faced by thousands of Christians in Nigeria,” during a UN event Wednesday.
And on Thursday, the House Foreign Affairs Africa Subcommittee held a hearing on Nigeria with State Department officials regarding the labeling of Nigeria as a country of particular concern.
The-CNN-Wire
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