President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Sunday received a high-level delegation from the United States Africa Command (AFRICOM) at the State House, Abuja, in a move signalling continued efforts to deepen security cooperation between Nigeria and the United States.
The delegation was led by AFRICOM Commander, General Dagvin Anderson, and the meeting was attended by Nigeria’s top security chiefs.
The development was disclosed in a post on X (formerly Twitter) by the Special Assistant to the President on Social Media, Dada Olusegun.
According to the post, President Tinubu, accompanied by the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and the service chiefs, held discussions with General Anderson, members of his team and the Charge d’Affaires of the United States Embassy in Nigeria, Mr. Keith Heffern.
The U.S. delegation included Mr. Keith Heffern, Charge d’Affaires; General Dagvin Anderson, Commander of AFRICOM; Command Sergeant Major Garric M. Banfield, AFRICOM’s Command Senior Enlisted Leader; and Ambassador Peter Vrooman, Senior Foreign Policy Adviser to AFRICOM.
On the Nigerian side, President Tinubu was joined by Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, National Security Adviser; General Christopher Musa (rtd), Minister of Defence; General Olufemi Oluyede, Chief of Defence Staff; Lieutenant-General Waidi Shaibu, Chief of Army Staff; Lieutenant-General Emmanuel Uandiandeye, Chief of Defence Intelligence; Mohammed Mohammed, Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA); and Tosin Ajayi, Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS).
While details of the discussions were not disclosed, the meeting is believed to have focused on regional security, counter-terrorism cooperation, intelligence sharing and military collaboration, amid ongoing security challenges across Nigeria and West Africa.
The engagement underscores the strategic importance of Nigeria-U.S. defence relations as both countries seek to strengthen stability and security on the continent.
Tinubu Hosts AFRICOM Commander in Abuja as Nigeria, U.S. Deepen Security Ties
