The Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government has said it is not considering any military base in the country.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, made this known in a statement on Monday in Abuja.
He said the government is aware of false alarms being raised in some quarters alleging discussions with some foreign countries on the siting of foreign military bases in the country.
Idris stated that the government has neither received nor considering any proposals from any country on the establishment of any foreign military bases in the country.
The minister, therefore, urged the general public to totally disregard this falsehood.
The statement reads: “The Federal Government is aware of false alarms being raised in some quarters alleging discussions between the Federal Government of Nigeria and some foreign countries on the siting of foreign military bases in the country.
“We urge the general public to totally disregard this falsehood.
The Federal Government is not in any such discussion with any foreign country. We have neither received nor are we considering any proposals from any country on the establishment of any foreign military bases in Nigeria.
The Nigerian government already enjoys foreign cooperation in tackling ongoing security challenges, and the President remains committed to deepening these partnerships, with the goal of achieving the national security objectives of the Renewed Hope Agenda.”
Recall that some Northern opinion leaders had asked President Tinubu not to allow the United States and French Governments to relocate their military bases from the Sahel to Nigeria.
In a letter, the northern leaders said the US and French governments have allegedly been lobbying Nigeria and other countries in the region to sign new defence pacts allowing them to redeploy their expelled troops.
The leaders said setting up the military bases would pose dangers for the country and also expressed concerns about the economic and environmental impacts of hosting foreign military bases.
