President Bola Tinubu has received a high-level delegation from the United States led by the Commander of the United States Africa Command (USAFRICOM) at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
The delegation was headed by General Dagvin R. Anderson, Commander of USAFRICOM, and included the Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria, Mr. Keith Heffern, as well as other senior officials.
The meeting took place at the State House, where President Tinubu welcomed the visitors alongside the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, and Nigeria’s service chiefs.
The development was confirmed on Sunday in a statement issued by the Special Assistant to the President on Social Media, Mr. Dada Olusegun.
According to the statement, “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, alongside his National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, and service chiefs, received in audience the Commander of the United States Africa Command, General Dagvin Anderson, his team, and the Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria, Keith Heffern, at the State House, Abuja.”
Specific details of the discussions were not disclosed, as the meeting was held behind closed doors. However, the visit comes at a time of expanding security collaboration between Nigeria and the United States.
The engagement also follows reports that the United States recently deployed a small contingent of troops to Nigeria on February 3, representing the first officially acknowledged U.S. military presence in the country since airstrikes targeted terrorist positions on Christmas Day 2025.
What you should know
The visit by the USAFRICOM commander highlights growing security ties between Nigeria and the United States amid rising insecurity across several regions.
While details of the talks were not made public, the timing suggests a focus on counterterrorism, military cooperation, and intelligence sharing.
The reported deployment of U.S. troops earlier in February marks a significant development in bilateral defence relations and signals renewed American involvement in Nigeria’s security landscape.
