Nigeria, U.S. Joint Working Group to hold security talks
Nigeria, U.S. Joint Working Group to hold security talks
As a follow-up to the Federal Government officials’ engagement with their United States (U.S.) counterparts over the labelling of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) and threats by President Donald Trump, security talks have been scheduled between the two countries.
The U.S. is expected to support Nigeria in battling the escalating insecurity in parts of the country.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has raised a team led by National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, to discuss with U.S. officials.
Other members of the delegation are Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar; Minister of Defence, Mohammed Abubakar Badaru; Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo; and Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Dr. Bernard Doro.
Also on the team are the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Olufemi Oluyede; Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency, Ambassador Mohammed Mohammed; and Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun.
Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said in a statement that Ms. Idayat Hassan of the NSA Office and Mr. Paul Alabi of the Nigerian Embassy in Washington will man the secretariat of the working group.
The United States-Nigeria Joint Working Group is a bilateral mechanism for strengthening collaboration between both countries in addressing Nigeria’s security challenges, an official said last night.
The presidential approval followed last week’s high-level engagements in Washington, DC, where a Nigerian delegation, led by Ribadu, held extensive talks with senior US government officials.
The creation of the joint working group was one of the key outcomes of those meetings.
Onanuga said the Ribadu team would also be supported by a multi-stakeholder team drawn from security, diplomatic, defence, and humanitarian agencies.
The members of the team will oversee the implementation of bilateral agreements, he added.
Onanuga said President Tinubu had urged the newly constituted team to “work assiduously” with their U.S. counterparts to ensure the smooth operationalisation of all agreements reached during the talks and to strengthen cooperation across multiple sectors.
He said the Joint Working Group is expected to fast-track the coordination of intelligence sharing, operational support, humanitarian response, and other bilateral commitments aimed at bolstering Nigeria’s national security architecture.
The CPC labelling of Nigeria was premised on the complaint by Christian leaders who alleged Christian genocide, a claim the Federal Government has disputed.
Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, who faulted the claim, lamented the misunderstanding of the Nigerian security situation by Trump, despite concerted efforts by the Tinubu Administration to tackle terrorism and banditry.
Despite the rescue of the 24 abducted schoolgirls in Maga, Kebbi State and the 38 worshippers in Eruku, Kwara State, there were abductions yesterday in Niger State, where pupils of St. Mary Catholic School, Papiri, are still in kidnappers’ custody.
A boy and six girls were also abducted yesterday in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) outskirts.
About 10 farmers were kidnapped from Angwan-Kawo and Kuchipa villages in Erena Ward of Shiroro Local Government Area while harvesting crops.
The Niger State Police Command confirmed the incident, saying efforts were underway to rescue the victims.
The command’s spokesperson, Wasiu Abiodun, said in a statement: “On November 26, 2025, at about 8pm, a report was received indicating that suspected armed men abducted about ten persons from Angwan-Kawo and Kuchipa villages of Shiroro Local Government Area.
“Effort is being made to rescue the victims.”
In a separate incident within the same axis, bandits stormed the Palaita community and abducted about 25 farmers, including women, from a rice farm.
Residents said the attackers also injured a visually-impaired villager during the raid.
The latest assault comes barely a week after school children and teachers were seized from St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Schools in Papiri, Agwarra Local Government Area of the State.
In Abuja, panic spread in the Gidan-Bijimi community of the Bwari Area Council on Wednesday night when gunmen kidnapped a 16-year-old boy and six girls.
The community shares a border with Kaduna State, an area repeatedly targeted by criminal gangs.
A resident, Moses, stated that the attackers arrived around 9:30 p.m.
“They raided two houses and went away with six girls and a 16-year-old boy,” he said.
He added that vigilantes tried to respond but retreated due to the attackers’ heavy weapons.
Another resident reported that the victims had travelled for a burial when the armed men struck.
Efforts to reach the FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, were unsuccessful, as calls and messages were not answered at the time of press.
The incident came hours after FCT Minister Nyesom Wike held a security meeting with top law enforcement operatives on curbing persistent bandit raids in Abuja border communities.
Communities in both Niger and the FCT have repeatedly called for stronger security intervention as bandit attacks continue to spread across farmlands and rural settlements.
