No French base Nigeria: The Federal Government has once again refuted claims that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved the establishment of a French military base in Nigeria.
This rebuttal followed a report by an online news platform suggesting that France intended to set up a military base in Abuja under the guise of launching a language academy to teach French to Nigerian military personnel.
Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, Acting Head of Crisis Monitoring and Public Communications at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, rejected the report, describing it briefly as “not true.”
According to the original article, which cited unnamed sources, President Tinubu allegedly succumbed to pressure from French President Emmanuel Macron during a recent visit to Paris. It also claimed the initiative was being discreetly pursued to avoid scrutiny and possible opposition from the National Assembly, given its strategic and security sensitivities. The report further referenced the inauguration of a French language laboratory at the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) in Kaduna in January 2024.
The Federal Government had earlier addressed similar concerns. In May 2024, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, firmly stated that Nigeria was not in any discussions with foreign nations about setting up military bases. He encouraged the public to dismiss such reports and reaffirmed the government’s commitment to bolstering international security collaboration without compromising national sovereignty.
Similarly, the French Embassy in Nigeria also denied involvement in any military arrangements, aligning its stance with that of the Nigerian government. These reiterations followed a letter allegedly sent by northern elders to President Tinubu and National Assembly leaders, cautioning against defence deals with the United States and France. The elders warned of foreign lobbying efforts aimed at redeploying troops previously stationed in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger to Nigeria. They argued such agreements could undermine Nigeria’s strategic independence and pointed to the ineffectiveness of past foreign military efforts in combating terrorism in the Sahel.
Still on No French base Nigeria
Across West and Central Africa, France has encountered increasing opposition, as public sentiment grows more hostile toward its post-colonial influence. Protests have erupted in several Francophone nations, including Mali and Côte d’Ivoire, where demonstrators have demanded a complete break from France.
France’s colonial legacy in Africa—especially its policy of direct rule and continued ties with African elites after independence, often referred to as “Francafrique”—has sparked deep-rooted resentment. Despite its reduced political role, French troops, businesses, and influence remain pervasive in the region, fueling criticism that France profits economically while doing little to enhance regional stability.
In recent years, numerous African nations have expelled French military forces. Until 2022, French troops were stationed in Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Chad, Djibouti, Gabon, Côte d’Ivoire, and Senegal. However, following the conclusion of Operation Barkhane in 2022, France’s main counterterrorism mission in the Sahel, countries such as Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso annulled defence agreements with France, accusing it of inefficacy and excessive interference.
After President Emmanuel Macron announced a phased military pullout from the Sahel in June 2021, French troops withdrew from Mali in August 2022, Burkina Faso in February 2023, and Niger by December 2023. Chad joined the list in November 2024, with France beginning to withdraw the approximately 1,000 troops stationed there, a process expected to conclude by January 2025.
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