The United States has deployed a small military team to Nigeria, AFRICOM Commander General Dagvin Anderson revealed
US Deploys Military Team to Nigeria in New Security Pact – AFRICOM Confirms
The United States has officially confirmed the presence of a small team of American military personnel on Nigerian soil, signaling a fresh chapter in bilateral security cooperation against terrorism.
AFRICOM Commander General Dagvin Anderson made the disclosure Tuesday during a press briefing, describing the deployment as a direct outcome of intensified high-level engagements, including a key meeting between President Bola Tinubu and U.S. officials in Rome late last year.
“That has led to increased collaboration between our nations, to include a small US team that brings some unique capabilities from the United States in order to augment what Nigeria has been doing for several years,” Anderson said.
The announcement marks the first public U.S. acknowledgement of troops in Nigeria since the Donald Trump administration authorized precision missile strikes on Christmas Day targeting terrorist positions in Sokoto State’s Bauni Forest, Tangaza LGA.
Details remain limited: Anderson did not reveal the team’s exact size, specific roles, or exact deployment timeline.
The move follows a recent high-powered U.S. delegation visit to Abuja led by Under Secretary of State Allison Hooker, involving officials from eight federal agencies. Nigeria’s side was headed by National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu during the bilateral working group session.
The renewed partnership unfolds against the backdrop of Washington’s continued designation of Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) over persistent security and human rights challenges, as well as President Trump’s earlier warnings of potential direct U.S. military action—“guns-a-blazing”—to protect vulnerable Christian communities from extremist violence.
As of filing, Nigeria’s Ministry of Defence had not issued an official response to the AFRICOM confirmation.
The development underscores a strategic shift toward closer U.S.-Nigeria military alignment aimed at countering long-standing terrorist threats in the northwest and beyond.
