Deji Elumoye in Abuja

The Senior Adviser to United States President, Donald Trump, on Arab and African Affairs, Massad Boulos, yesterday, has described allegations of religious persecution in Nigeria as misguided and inconsistent with the realities on the ground.

He affirmed that terrorism in the country was indiscriminate and affects citizens of all faiths and ethnicities.
Boulos, who met with President Bola  Tinubu on the sidelines of  the 10th Aqaba Process Summit in Rome, told newsmen after the meeting that it was “unfortunate” that narratives of religious targeting were being promoted despite clear evidence that extremist groups such as Boko Haram and ISIS have killed more muslims than christians in Nigeria.

According to him, “terrorism has no colour, no relation, no tribe,” stressing that people from all religious and ethnic backgrounds have been victims of violence.
His words: “Of course any incident of any loss of life is absolutely unfortunate, of course those who know the terrain well know that terrorism has no colour ,no relation, no tribe. People of all religions and of all tribes are dying and it is very unfortunate and we even know that Boko Haram and ISIS are killing more muslims than more Christians so people are suffering from all sorts of backgrounds that are not specifically targeted about  one group or the other.”
While condemning every loss of life as “one too many,” the U.S. envoy underscored the need for Nigeria and the United States to continue to work in partnership to end terrorism and communal clashes across the country.

Boulos further commended the Tinubu-led government’s recent security measures and increased deployment of resources to troubled areas in the Middle Belt, hailing  visible improvements and reiterating that Nigeria remains a diverse but united nation, where christians and muslims have co-existed peacefully for centuries.
“With regards to other incidence that happened in the middle belt  where farmers are located and most of these farmers have location and herdersmen are going through they have this incidence, definitely it is not something that we can say are specifically targeted about this specific group, however we must work together to put an end to this.

“However, any loss of life is too many, one is too many, we should put an end to working together in partnership to put an end to this.
“The Nigerian government and the President Tinubu’s administration have recently put in additional measure and put more resources in those area and we have seen more improvements in those areas , we appreciate those measures and we look forward to ending these sorts of acts wherever they come from and we know that Nigeria is a country with all sorts of groups and religious groups, ethnic and tribal and other groups are living together for centuries and Nigerian population is split 50/50 and so this has never been a serious religious issue and should not be, but we appreciate what President Tinubu has done and we shall continue to work together to make sure it’s taken care of.”
Boulous further disclosed that he discussed enhanced cooperation with President Tinubu with a view to further strengthening cooperation with the government of the United States in combating terrorism and strengthening regional security.

Said he: “We talked about a number of things, most importantly on counter terrorism , we have been working very closely with the Nigerian government and President Tinubu’s administration on countering terrorism and fighting terrorism.
“What is happening today in the Sahel region and in the Lake Chad Basin is of extreme concern to all of us not just people in the sub region but to the entire world to Europe and to the entire world
“It is a very serious concern and we are working on combating it and to we will be cooperating with and continue to cooperate towards combating this serious problem in the region”.
On Nigeria-U.S Cooperation on the Gulf of Guinea, the Senior Adviser emphasized the importance of continued collaboration between Nigeria and the United States in strengthening maritime security across the Gulf of Guinea.

According to him, maritime safety remains a vital area of cooperation, not only for Nigeria but for all countries within the Gulf of Guinea region.
He noted that both nations have already established strong frameworks for intelligence sharing, joint training, and technology-driven security operations, adding that several ongoing programs are being expanded to address emerging threats along the West African coast.
Boulos also acknowledged Nigeria’s recent acquisition of advanced maritime equipment from the United States, expressing optimism that the partnership would deepen through enhanced operational capacity, intelligence exchange, and sustained regional coordination.
“We also talked about maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea , also a very important part of our cooperation not just Nigeria but other countries within the Gulf of Guinea so hopefully this is something we can continue to work on.

“There is a lot of work we have already done together already there is information sharing, there is training , there is technology there are quiet a few programs that we have worked on and we will continue to work on but hopefully we can increase that , we know that Nigeria recently purchase some equipment from the United State and we hopefully hope towards working improving on that “
The envoy reaffirmed the commitment of the United States to working closely with the Tinubu administration to secure the Gulf of Guinea, safeguard trade routes, and strengthen economic stability across West Africa.

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