U.S. gives conditions to delist Nigeria from blacklist

The United States Government has given Nigeria three conditions to have its name wiped off its list of countries to watch on global terrorism.

The conditions are: the country must enact a legislation criminalising terror acts, shore-up its airport security and make a public denunciation of all forms of terror and their sponsors.

Foreign Affairs Minister, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, said this at a meeting with members of the House of Representatives Committees on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora Affairs.

The Committee on Foreign Affairs is led by Rep. Umar Bature, while the Diaspora Affairs Committee is headed by Rep. Abike Dabiri-Erewa.

The minister, who had in the meeting commended the committees for their efforts in good diplomatic relations between the country and its foreign partners, urged the committees to collaborate more with the ministry in its fight to improve the country's image in the last few months.

The minister, according to Bature had told them in a closed-door meeting that the United States had told the ministry that only a public renunciation of terrorism activities in forms of religious skirmishes, socio-cultural conflicts, extra-judicial killings and militancy in some parts of the country, the passage of a bill against terror and a security improvement at international airports would save the country's name from the ignoble list.

The United States Government, it was learnt, also wants its Special Marines to aboard flights from Nigeria to the United States.

Vanguard

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