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Yesterday, and completely out of the blues, President Buhari requested that the #UnitedStates establish an @USAfricaCommand base in #Nigeria.
It was a stunning reversal from President Yar'Adua's position from 12 years ago - https://bit.ly/3vm1qrN .
It was a stunning reversal from President Yar'Adua's position from 12 years ago - https://bit.ly/3vm1qrN .
The headline from @GazetteNGR was, in my opinion, the most realistic: "Bring American soldiers to help tackle Nigeria’s insecurity, Buhari begs U.S." - https://bit.ly/3t7uVMB
Yes, that is what the President's request amounted to.
Pleading with people we have snubbed in the past, or in other words, an admission that we have lost the #BokoHaram war. https://bit.ly/3aIULQq
Pleading with people we have snubbed in the past, or in other words, an admission that we have lost the #BokoHaram war. https://bit.ly/3aIULQq
There are three points that I have to bring out: First has already been said: we have lost the war against #BokoHaram, and this is an admission by other means.
What annoys me is the lack of honesty with regards the insurgents.
For example, having so many schools closed in Northern #Nigeria has always been one of #BokoHaram's strategic objectives, and now they have it. Let me repeat, we've lost. https://twitter.com/sbmintelligence/status/1374624522997956608
For example, having so many schools closed in Northern #Nigeria has always been one of #BokoHaram's strategic objectives, and now they have it. Let me repeat, we've lost. https://twitter.com/sbmintelligence/status/1374624522997956608
Second is this: having a major #US base in #Nigeria, and that is assuming that the Americans accede to our plea, will make our country a magnet for every Jihadist group from Tripoli to Timbuktu.
There's nothing that jihadists love better than to bloody the nose of the Great Satan, and a base in a country that does not even know where its borders start and stop is too attractive a prospect. https://bit.ly/3gGEpM5
Finally, my reading is Buhari and his cabal have figured out that #Nigeria's military apparatus has lost the monopoly of violence in the country and can thus no longer maintain their hold on power.
They are thus essentially calling on @USArmy to help them do the job.
They are thus essentially calling on @USArmy to help them do the job.
I suspect that if the Americans take the offer, ndi Buhari will expect that the base will be set up in Abuja.
Heck, I won't be surprised if they ask the Guards Brigade to vacate Wu Bassey Barracks "to make our guests comfortable."
But they miss the point.
Heck, I won't be surprised if they ask the Guards Brigade to vacate Wu Bassey Barracks "to make our guests comfortable."
But they miss the point.
Uncle Sam does not give free lunch, and Uncle Sam does not let client states dictate where and how Uncle Sam puts his boys, there is the economics of the whole thing.
An American base will not necessarily improve our economy as some think.
@USAfricaCommand is no more than 2,000 soldiers, hardly a size worth sending over the families of the servicemen along with them.
We will not get Stuttgart or Lakenheath, we are likelier to get Kandahar.
@USAfricaCommand is no more than 2,000 soldiers, hardly a size worth sending over the families of the servicemen along with them.
We will not get Stuttgart or Lakenheath, we are likelier to get Kandahar.
There are some of #Nigeria's internal security problems that Buhari is interested in solving ( #BokoHaram 200km away from his bed), and others he has no interest in hearing about (the killings in Benue), and still others that he simply wants to crush (IPOB).
This invitation is simply an excuse to enlist #America's support to deal with his pet problems, but does it align with US interests?
At the moment, I think the Americans have just two interests in #Nigeria: Islamist violence in the Sahel (which touches us), and piracy in the Gulf of Guinea, which has a limited effect on global shipping.
Are those enough for them to come and risk the lives of their boys?
Are those enough for them to come and risk the lives of their boys?
Having said all this, the key question is what exactly can the US military do?
Take #Somalia for example, even closer to key US assets in the Gulf, or #Afghanistan, you'll have no choice but to become a lot less enthusiastic about #America's ability to improve a bad situation.
Take #Somalia for example, even closer to key US assets in the Gulf, or #Afghanistan, you'll have no choice but to become a lot less enthusiastic about #America's ability to improve a bad situation.
At this point, let me go and search for my daily akpu. It won't pound itself.
