Nigeria to send 200 special forces to Türkiye for training – Defence minister

The Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa (retd.), has said that Nigeria and Türkiye have reached an agreement for the immediate deployment of 200 Nigerian Special Forces for training in Türkiye.

Musa disclosed this in an interview on the sidelines of the 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2026) in Antalya, Türkiye, on Saturday, following discussions with his Turkish counterpart, Yasar Guler.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the three-day forum, themed: “Mapping Tomorrow, Managing Uncertainties,” which started on Friday, is attended by world leaders, ministers, and diplomats, among others.

The minister explained that, following the agreement, Türkiye had allocated a training quota of 200 personnel from Nigeria’s Special Forces, who will be deployed immediately upon their return to Nigeria.

“We have a Special Forces training agreement. Türkiye has agreed to give us 200 Special Forces trainees, so as soon as I return, we are sending them here for training.

“We will continue to do a lot. There will be exercises. The first exercise is coming up later in the year. So, in so many areas of defence, we are going to work together,” he said.

The minister also disclosed that Nigeria and Türkiye had both agreed on joint defence equipment production and the transfer of military technology.

Musa said that Nigeria and Türkiye had come a long way, working together over the years, adding that, “since 1960, Türkiye has been like family to Nigeria.”

According to him, Türkiye has a lot of defence experience from which Nigeria could learn through shared experiences.

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“I’ve had a meeting with the Turkish Minister of Defence, where we shared a lot of ideas on how to improve our relationship, defence-wise.

“Türkiye has improved dramatically in the production of military hardware.

“Nigeria is still developing, and we have agreed that we are going to partner together so that we have a co-production of some of these items,” he said.

The minister noted that while Nigeria had been fighting asymmetric warfare against insurgency for about 17 years, Türkiye has had a similar experience of fighting against terrorism for 40 years.

He added, “Because of that, we will move into training, production, and improving on our defence, industrial production, and exchange of officers and soldiers.”

NAN reports that the annual event also featured panel discussions and sessions covering a wide range of topics shaped by contemporary global defence and security, political, economic, environmental, and technological dynamics.

Participants from about 150 countries, including 5,000 decision-makers, 20 heads of state and government, 40 foreign ministers, 60 invited foreign media, and diplomats, among others, attended the forum.

(NAN)