The United States has explained why it has
refused to sell fighter helicopter to Nigeria, to
combat the on-going crisis in the North.
While fielding questions from Journalists on the
allegations by the Nigerian Ambassador to the
US, Prof. Adebowale Adefuye, the State
Department spokeswoman, Jen Psaki, said “the
US refused to sell the helicopters to Nigeria due
to concerns about the ability of the military to
use and maintain them. Moreover Nigeria has
purchased helicopters that originated in countries
other than the US and nothing in our decision
prevents Nigeria from obtaining weapons and
equipment from other sources.
“Earlier this year, we denied the transfer of some
cobra attack helicopters to Nigeria due to
concerns about Nigeria’s ability to use and
maintain this type of helicopter in its effort
against Boko Haram and ongoing concerns about
the Nigerian military’s protection of civilians when
conducting military operations. We shared those
concerns with Nigeria before this decision and
subsequent to it.
“We’ll continue to look for ways to deepen our
cooperation with Nigeria to help it acquire the
systems and skills needed to restore peace and
security. But obviously, we’ve provided a great
deal of assistance over the past several months.
Let me just lay out the facts of our assistance:
Over the past six months, the United States has
started sharing intelligence with Nigeria, began
training a new army battalion and held numerous
high-level discussions with Nigerian authorities on
additional measures to best address the Boko
Haram threat.
“We have also provided and approved sales of
military equipment to its armed forces. These
decisions are made, of course, after careful
scrutiny to ensure they conform with the US law. ”
She however assured the Nigerian government
that the US was ready to help Nigeria train and
improve the effectiveness of its military.
Earlier in the week, Adefuye told journalists that
“The U.S. government has up till today refused to
grant Nigeria’s request to purchase lethal
equipment that would have brought down the
terrorists within a short time on the basis of the
allegations that Nigeria’s defence forces have
been violating human rights of Boko Haram
suspects when captured or arrested.
“We find it difficult to understand how and why,
in spite of the U.S. presence in Nigeria, with their
sophisticated military technology, Boko Haram
should be expanding and becoming more deadly.
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