Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has said that Nigeria will continue to assist its close neighbours in diverse ways as required.
Receiving the newly inaugurated President of Republic of Niger, Mr. Mohamed Bazoum, who is in Nigeria on his first international visit on Monday in Abuja, Buhari congratulated him on winning the recent presidential election, and his successful inauguration into office.
The Nigerian President’s spokesman, Mr. Femi Adesina, said in a statement on Monday in Abuja that Buhari told his guest that “You have been in the system for a long time. The only thing is that you had never been President. Now you are one.”
“We will stabilise our region for the benefit of the two countries. Nigerians and Nigeriens are people with similar culture, language and ways of life, and we also share about 1,500 kilometres of land border, so we cannot ignore each other,” Buhari was quoted as saying.
Speaking on the issue of terrorism as perpetrated by Boko Haram, President Buhari observed that the Republic of Niger also suffers high casualties, vowing; “We will do all it takes to secure our two countries.”
Buhari was thankful to the immediate past President, Mahamadou Issoufou, for what he called “his understanding and sacrifices” to help stabilise the region, urging the successor to maintain the institutions his predecessor had established.
Bazoum had earlier said that he was delighted to make Nigeria his first port of call, noting that the two countries have common interests, “and, therefore, a good relationship is very important”.
On security, he observed that the fact that some Nigerians flee to Niger during terrorist attacks “shows that we need to cooperate, and we will face our challenges together”.
According to the statement, Bazoum, who is on a two-day official visit to Nigeria, will be hosted to a private breaking of fast by his host, President Buhari.
GIK/APA