JUST IN: US Lawmakers Stop $875m Arms Sale To Nigeria – Report

JUST IN: US Lawmakers Stop $875m Arms Sale To Nigeria – Report

by Victor Ndubuisi
A+A-
Reset

A proposed sale of $875 million worth of arms to Nigeria has been stopped over concerns about the Nigerian government’s human rights record.

A report on Foreign Policy revealed that top lawmakers on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee have delayed clearing a proposed sale of 12 AH-1 Cobra attack helicopters and accompanying defense systems to the Nigerian military.

The report noted that the proposed arms sale included 28 helicopter engines produced by GE Aviation, 14 military-grade aircraft navigation systems made by Honeywell, and 2,000 advanced precision kill weapon systems—laser-guided rocket munitions.

Nnamdi Kanu Writes Joe Biden Over Arms Sale To Nigeria

The report noted that behind-the-scenes controversy over the proposed arms sale illustrates a broader debate among Washington policymakers over how to balance national security with human rights objectives.

Advertisement

It said the development shows how powerful US lawmakers want to push Joe Biden’s administration to rethink the US relations with Nigeria amid growing concerns that President Muhammadu Buhari is snowballing into “authoritarianism” as the country is battling multiple security challenges, including jihadist insurgency.

According to the report, despite the battle against Boko Haram insurgents, western governments and international human rights organisations are being critical of the Buhari-led administration over the Twitter ban, systemic corruption issues, and the invasion of Lekki tollgate by soldiers during the #EndSARS protest in October 2020.

REVEALED: Why Small Arms Control Center Was Set Up In Nigeria

In June, a senator, and chairperson of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Bob Menendez, during a senate hearing with Anthony Blinken, US secretary of state, called for a “fundamental rethink of the framework of our overall engagement” with Nigeria.

Multiple US officials and congressional aides who spoke with Foreign Policy said Menendez and Jim Risch, a Republican senator on the senate foreign relations committee have placed a hold on the proposed arms sale.

Officials familiar with the matter said the details on the proposed sale were first sent by the US State Department to Congress in January before Biden was inaugurated as president.

IPOB Tells DSS: We Don’t Buy Arms, We Produce Them

Advertisement

“Some experts said the United States should hit the pause button on major defense sales until it makes a broader assessment of the extent to which corruption and mismanagement hobble the Nigerian military and whether the military is doing enough to minimize civilian casualties in its campaign against Boko Haram and other violent insurrectionists,’’ the report said.

 

Advertisement

Follow us on Facebook

Post Disclaimer

The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by the author and forum participants on this website do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of Anaedo Online or official policies of the Anaedo Online.

You may also like

Advertisement