The United States will offer to help Nigeria’s new leader track down
\nbillions of dollars in stolen assets and increase U.S. military assistance
\nto fight Islamic militants, U.S. officials said, as Washington seeks to
\n“reset” ties with Africa’s biggest economy.<\/p>\n
Next week’s visit to Washington by President Muhammadu Buhari is viewed by
\nthe U.S. administration as a chance to set the seal on improving ties
\nsince he won a March election hailed as Nigeria’s first democratic power
\ntransition in decades.<\/p>\n
U.S. cooperation with Buhari\u2019s predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, had
\nvirtually ground to a halt over issues including his refusal to
\ninvestigate corruption and human rights abuses by the Nigerian military.<\/p>\n
“President (Barack Obama) has long seen Nigeria as arguably the most
\nimportant strategic country in sub-Saharan Africa,” U.S. Deputy Secretary
\nof State Tony Blinken told Reuters. “The question is would there be an
\nopportunity to deepen our engagement and that opportunity is now.”<\/p>\n
The improving ties with Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer, come as
\nU.S. relations have cooled with two other traditional Africa powers –
\nEgypt and South Africa.<\/p>\n
U.S. officials have said they are willing to send military trainers to
\nhelp Nigeria counter a six-year-old northern insurgency by the Boko Haram
\nIslamist movement.<\/p>\n
Since Buhari’s election, Washington has committed $5 million in new
\nsupport for a multi-national task force set up to fight the group. This is
\nin addition to at least $34 million it is providing to Nigeria, Chad,
\nCameroon and Niger for equipment and logistics.<\/p>\n
Buhari’s move on July 13 to fire military chiefs appointed by Jonathan
\nclears the way for more military cooperation, U.S. officials say.<\/p>\n
“We’ve made clear there are additional things that can be done especially
\nnow that there is a new military leadership in place,” a senior U.S.
\nofficial said.<\/p>\n
Another senior U.S. official said Washington was urging Buhari, a Muslim
\nfrom the country’s north, to step up regional cooperation against the
\nmilitants and to provide more aid to afflicted communities to reduce the
\ngroup’s recruiting power.<\/p>\n
Buhari has said his priorities are strengthening Nigeria’s economy,
\nhard-hit by the fall in oil prices, boosting investment, and tackling “the
\nbiggest monster of all” – corruption.<\/p>\n
“Here too he is looking to deepen collaboration and one of the things he
\nis focused on is asset recovery,” the official said. “He is hopeful we can
\nhelp them recover some of that.”<\/p>\n
In 2014, the United States took control of more than $480 million siphoned
\naway by former Nigerian dictator Sani Abacha and his associates into banks
\naround the world.<\/p>\n
Washington has broad powers to track suspicious funds and enforce
\nsanctions against individuals.<\/p>\n
Jonathan fired Nigeria’s central bank governor in February last year after
\nhe raised questions about the disappearance of about $20 billion in oil
\nrevenues.<\/p>\n
Johnnie Carson, a former assistant secretary of state, said Washington
\nshould not let security issues overshadow the need for closer trade and
\ninvestment ties.<\/p>\n
“Nigeria is the most important country in Africa,” said Carson, currently
\nan adviser to the U.S. Institute of Peace.<\/p>\n
Now more than ever, “the relationship with Nigeria should not rest
\nessentially on a security and military-to-military relationship,” he
\nadded.<\/p>\n
Lauren Ploch Blanchard, an Africa specialist with the non-partisan
\nCongressional Research Services, said the U.S. challenge was to work with
\nBuhari while giving him time to address the country’s vast problems.<\/p>\n
How Buhari will handle the campaign against Boko Haram is still an
\nunknown, Blanchard said.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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