L-R: Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), and his Beninese counterpart, Gildas Agonkan met
Nigeria and the Republic of Benin have agreed to deepen bilateral defence cooperation and enhance joint efforts to tackle cross-border security threats across West Africa.
The commitment was reached during a three-day working visit to Cotonou by Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), at the invitation of his Beninese counterpart, Gildas Agonkan.
Discussions centred on harmonising regional security frameworks, improving intelligence sharing and strengthening collaboration to safeguard democratic governance, secure land borders and protect the Gulf of Guinea from piracy and other maritime crimes.
Both countries also agreed to establish seamless, real-time intelligence-sharing mechanisms to enable their armed forces to detect, track and neutralise transnational criminal networks and insurgent groups before they carry out attacks.
General Musa reaffirmed Nigeria’s zero-tolerance policy on terrorism and called for closer cooperation to deny violent extremist groups safe havens along the two countries’ shared borders. Nigeria also offered to expand operational coordination at border areas to curb insurgent infiltration, arms smuggling and other forms of transnational crime.
As part of the visit, the Defence Minister inspected Nigerian Army personnel deployed in Togbin, Cotonou, under Operation ATILEYIN ALAFIA II, Nigeria’s Peace Support Mission in the Republic of Benin.
Addressing the troops, Musa stressed the importance of joint military operations with Benin.
“We are going to partner with the troops of the Republic of Benin to ensure that we stop all those bandits and criminals killing innocent people in our countries. Together, we will deal with them,” he said.
He explained that one of the objectives of the visit was to strengthen operational coordination between both countries.
“One of the reasons for my visit is to meet with the Minister of Defence so that we can work out joint operations and prevent these criminals from infiltrating through our borders,” he added.
Musa also assured the troops of the Federal Government’s commitment to improving their welfare and providing the resources needed to carry out their duties effectively.
“We are following up on the welfare initiatives approved by Mr President to ensure you are well taken care of. We understand the sacrifices you make and remain committed to giving you the support required to secure Nigeria,” he said.
The Nigerian delegation also visited the Centre for Post-Conflict Demining and Explosive Ordnance Disposal Operations and the Glo-Djigbe Industrial Zone as part of efforts to strengthen local capacity under the Defence Ministry’s Intelligence-Driven and Technology-Enabled Defence initiative.
The visit also provided an opportunity for both countries to exchange ideas on promoting industrial growth and economic development in line with ECOWAS trade protocols and the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
