French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday that his Nigerian counterpart, President Bola Tinubu, had reached out to him asking for help in stopping the violent attacks plaguing the oil-rich West African nation.
In a post on Twitter, Macron said he had spoken to Tinubu.
“I expressed France’s solidarity in the face of various security challenges, especially the terrorist threat in the north,” Macron said. “At their request, we will strengthen our partnership with the authorities and our support for affected populations. We call on all our partners to step up their commitment.”
“There can be no spectators,” Macron said.
Why is Nigeria asking for help from France?
Nigeria has seen a sharp increase in attacks in the northern regions of the country, mostly carried out by criminal gangs and Islamic insurgents.
In recent weeks, men, women and children have been abducted by the hundreds from schools and church services there.
The situation has become so dire that US President Donald Trump recently said he might send troops to Nigeria to protect Christians, who he says are being targeted.
In November, Trump said he was considering sanctions and a Pentagon counterterrorism commitment in an effort to force Nigeria to better protect Christian communities.
Nigeria says it welcomes foreign support for its security struggles as long as its sovereignty is respected.
The Nigerian government says that as complex as the situation may appear, criminal gangs are often indiscriminately targeting Christians as well as Muslims.
Nigeria’s Islamist insurgency has overwhelmed the armed forces for more than a decade, while armed kidnappers in the northwest and deadly clashes between predominantly Muslim herders and mostly Christian farmers over resources in the center of the country have further strained security forces.
Many scholars point to conflict over scarce resources, rather than religious differences, as the real source of tension.
How can France help Nigeria?
Macron did not clarify how exactly France planned to help Nigeria.
In the past, Nigeria has received intelligence and material from the US – including jets – as well as training from the UK.
France recently withdrew its troops from West and Central Africa as Russian-backed militants in several African states claimed to be “breaking the chains of colonialism” by overthrowing their governments and expelling French troops from their soil.
Edited by: Rana Taha