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United States President Donald Trump’s administration has said it will sell high-tech aircraft to Nigeria for its campaign against Boko Haram Islamic extremists. This in line with Trump’s pledge to assist the Nigerian government in its fight against terrorism.
In a phone conversation to President Buhari, Trump pledged to sell aircraft to Nigeria despite concerns over abuses committed by Nigeria’s security forces. According to U.S. officials, Congress is expected to receive formal notification within weeks, setting in motion a deal with Nigeria that the Obama administration had planned to approve at the very end of Barack Obama’s presidency reported AP on Monday.
The arrangement will call for Nigeria to purchase up to 12 Embraer A-29 Super Tucano aircraft with sophisticated targeting gear for nearly $600 million, one of the officials said, ThisDay reports. According to the report, the officials were not authorised to discuss the terms of the sale publicly and requested anonymity to speak about internal diplomatic conversations.
The Nigerian air force has been accused of bombing civilian targets at least three times in recent years. In the worst incident, a fighter jet on Jan. 17 repeatedly bombed a camp at Rann, near the border with Cameroon, where civilians had fled from Boko Haram. Between 100 and 236 civilians and aid workers were killed, according to official and community leaders’ counts.
That bombing occurred on the same day the Obama administration intended to officially notify Congress the sale would go forward. Instead, it was abruptly put on hold, according to an individual who worked on the issue during Obama’s presidency. Days later, Trump was inaugurated. United States President Donald Trump’s administration has said it will sale high-tech aircraft to Nigeria for its campaign against Boko Haram Islamic extremists. This in line with Trump’s pledge to assist the Nigerian government in its fight against terrorism.
In a phone conversation to President Buhari, Trump pledged to sell aircraft to Nigeria despite concerns over abuses committed by Nigeria’s security forces. According to U.S. officials, Congress is expected to receive formal notification within weeks, setting in motion a deal with Nigeria that the Obama administration had planned to approve at the very end of Barack Obama’s presidency reported AP on Monday. The arrangement will call for Nigeria to purchase up to 12 Embraer A-29 Super Tucano aircraft with sophisticated targeting gear for nearly $600 million, one of the officials said, ThisDay reports. According to the report, the officials were not authorised to discuss the terms of the sale publicly and requested anonymity to speak about internal diplomatic conversations. The Nigerian air force has been accused of bombing civilian targets at least three times in recent years.
In the worst incident, a fighter jet on Jan. 17 repeatedly bombed a camp at Rann, near the border with Cameroon, where civilians had fled from Boko Haram. Between 100 and 236 civilians and aid workers were killed, according to official and community leaders’ counts. That bombing occurred on the same day the Obama administration intended to officially notify Congress the sale would go forward. Instead, it was abruptly put on hold, according to an individual who worked on the issue during Obama’s presidency. Days later, Trump was inaugurated.
CGTN Africa