President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed appreciation to the government of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan for its support for Nigeria’s fight against terrorism and insurgency through the donation of military hardware and pledge to provide helicopters.
A statement signed by Mr. Femi Adesina, the President’s spokesperson, said President Buhari expressed his appreciation on Tuesday in New York during a bilateral meeting with King Abdullah II of Jordan, shortly after his address to the 72nd Session of the United Nations General Assembly.
The statement quoted the President as saying that said the donation of about 200 Armoured Fighting Vehicles “reflects true concern for Nigeria's security situation and genuine goodwill towards a friendly nation.”
President Buhari also reassured King Abdullah II of Nigeria's commitment towards the proposed Aqaba Process with countries in the Middle East and Nigeria's willingness to play a leading role in bringing West African into the collective security arrangement. The Jordanian monarch told President Buhari that his National Security Adviser will soon work out the finer details of the Aqaba Process with his Nigerian counterpart. It expected that the first Aqaba Process for Nigeria and sister countries within the sub-region with Jordan will be held in late November or early December 2017.
President Buhari equally pledged that Nigeria will continue to seek enhanced bilateral ties with Jordan. King Abdullah II, the statement added, had earlier informed President Buhari that the Jordanian government will open an embassy in Abuja in the next few months. President Buhari expressed delight and appreciation at the decision of the Jordanian government to open an embassy.
The President was accompanied to the bilateral meeting, the third of its kind since he came into office, by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Geoffrey Onyeama; National Security Adviser (NSA), Major General Babagana Monguno (retd.); and Nigeria's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Professor Tijjani Bande.
King Abdullah II told President Buhari that his National Security Adviser would soon be working out the finer details of the Aqaba Process with his Nigerian counterpart.
Shortly after President Buhari took office in 2015, King Abdullah II had offered to cooperate and support Nigeria in its fight against terrorism and insurgency. The offer resulted in the National Security Adviser, Major-General Monguno (retd.) making two visits to Jordan to follow up on issues previously discussed with the King, and the donation of military hardware and pledge of further support.
“These gestures are aimed at enhancing Nigeria's operational capabilities in the fight against terror both within the country and the Lake Chad Basin, which affects neighbouring Cameroun, Chad and Niger, where the Multinational Joint Task Force is engaging the Boko Haram insurgents and terrorists.
The National Security Adviser's second trip to Jordan on the invitation of the King in January 2016 to attend the 3rd Aqaba Process, also resulted in a renewed commitment between the two countries to consider multilateral action in confronting the menace of terrorism by replicating the Aqaba arrangement which the Kingdom of Jordan has with East African countries battling protracted terrorist menace,” the statement explained.