Nigeria signs security deal with Sahel state despite tensions

Nigeria and Niger have signed a security cooperation agreement despite strained relations following last year’s coup in Niamey. The Nigerian Army announced the deal on Thursday, stating that it aims to enhance regional stability.

The accord was struck during a meeting on Wednesday in Niger’s capital, Niamey, between Nigeria’s defense chief, General Christopher Gwabin Musa, and his Nigerien counterpart, General Moussa Salaou Barmou, according to an army statement.

“Both parties reaffirmed their commitment to resuming and strengthening collaboration, with a view to ensuring regional stability and security,” it said.

“Nigeria is universally known for adherence to its principle of good neighborliness and would not be used to destabilize Niger or any of Nigeria’s contiguous countries,” the statement added.

Niger has been under military rule since July 2023, when soldiers overthrew President Mohamed Bazoum. Aside from Burkina Faso and Mali, which are both under military rule, the event has damaged ties between the Sahel nation and its West African neighbors. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) had threatened to use force against the coup leaders, with several of Niger’s neighbors, including Nigeria, the regional bloc’s current chairman, expressing a willingness to contribute troops to the Paris-backed armed mission.

Niger, Burkina Faso, and Mali withdrew from the 15-state group in January, accusing it of posing a threat to their sovereignty by serving as a tool for foreign powers, particularly France, with whom they have severed military ties. Niamey’s new leadership, along with its Bamako and Ouagadougou allies, has claimed that the military takeovers in their respective countries were in response to the failure of their civilian governments to combat Islamist terrorists in the Sahel region despite the presence of foreign troops.

The three former French colonies have formed the Alliance of Sahel States—an alternative grouping through which they intend to jointly fight internal and external security threats.

While Niger has remained a member of the Nigeria-led cross-border Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTS) fighting Boko Haram around Lake Chad, it has reportedly kept its involvement to a minimum.

However, following the signing of the new agreement with Abuja on Wednesday, Niamey “affirmed its readiness to resume active participation in security cooperation under the MNJT,” according to a Nigerian Army statement.

The army said Niger’s defense chief has agreed to travel to Nigeria to finalize the specifics of this week’s defense pact, but did not specify which date.