Russian military officials on Monday visited Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, in Abuja, where they shared plans to support Nigeria in fighting terrorism.
The meeting was led by Lieutenant General Andrei Averianov, who promised that Russia would work closely with Nigeria’s military by sharing intelligence and expertise gathered during its operations in other countries.
The visit was confirmed by the Director of Defence Information, Brigadier General Tukur Gusau, who said the Russian team expressed readiness to share techniques developed during their missions in 39 countries.
Russia’s team mentioned they had gained useful knowledge in handling terrorist threats and offered to support Nigeria with weapons and training to help strengthen its armed forces.
During the meeting, General Musa welcomed the Russian team and spoke on behalf of President Bola Tinubu and the entire Nigerian military.
He acknowledged that both countries have faced losses from their separate conflicts and said it was important to explore new ways of working together, especially in military operations.
General Musa said Nigeria’s Army, Navy, and Air Force would benefit from more training in special operations.
He also mentioned the need for equipment like special boats, fast attack vessels, and better air surveillance tools.
According to him, the Nigerian military requires more spare parts and technical assistance to keep Russian-made platforms running.
He suggested that Russian experts could either carry out repairs in Nigeria or help move damaged equipment back to Russia for fixing.
He called on Russia to increase the sharing of intelligence, especially considering the long years of military experience Russia had gained in conflict zones such as the Sahel region.
General Musa noted that Nigeria and Russia have always had a strong relationship and said it was important to keep building on that through closer cooperation in defence matters.
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