- Three military aircraft carrying weapons from the United States landed at military bases in Borno between Thursday and Friday.
This was revealed in a news report published by the PUNCH on Sunday.
Defence Headquarters anonymous senior officers said the development was part of US interventions to support Nigeria in the fight against insecurity.
One of the officers said, “following Nigeria-US bilateral talks on security, the American government will not only deploy soldiers but also provide necessary logistics, including ammunition, to fight the insurgents.”
According to another senior officer, the ammunition was part of operational logistics, adding that the military often requires replenishment of ammunition after operations.
“I know that recently US aircraft came to supply ammunition for our platforms, and that wasn’t the first time. So, what you are saying may be true, though I have not been officially briefed.
“We go for operations and use different calibres of ammunition, which need to be replaced.
“The US and the Nigerian government, under the coordination of the NSA, are working together to end insecurity in the country. So, we should expect more deployments of aircraft and troops,” he added.
A US Defense official said “these initial flights are the vanguard of what will be a stream of C-17 transport flights into three main locations across Nigeria.”
@Mobilisingniger, on X, who claimed to be a counter-terrorism expert, said on Friday that a US Air Force military transport aircraft C30J landed at the Kaduna International Airport after departing from Ghana.
He said the Kaduna Depot might serve as a potential training hub for US personnel deployed to train the Nigerian military.
“A US Air Force military transport aircraft C30J has landed at Kaduna International Airport after departing from Ghana earlier this (Friday) evening. The movement is fuelling speculation that US personnel may utilise the Kaduna Depot as a potential training hub in collaboration with the Nigerian military. This signals a potential deepening of US–Nigeria security engagement amid ongoing regional security challenges,” the post read.
Another user, Brant Philip, said on X, that there had been a “massive delivery of equipment” to the Maiduguri Airbase, Borno State.
