Nigeria’s Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, announced on Tuesday that diplomatic engagements with the United States are progressing positively, following heightened tensions sparked by President Donald Trump’s allegations of an “existential threat” to Christianity in Nigeria.
The development comes after Trump, in a post on his Truth Social platform last month, claimed “thousands of Christians are being killed” by radical Islamist groups. He designated Nigeria a “country of particular concern” and instructed the Pentagon to prepare “options for possible military measures” against terrorist organizations operating within the country. The remarks prompted sharp criticism from the Federal Government, with President Bola Tinubu rejecting the claims and affirming Nigeria’s constitutional guarantee of religious freedom for all faiths. China and Russia also called on Washington to respect Nigeria’s sovereignty.
In a statement issued by the minister’s media aide, Rabiu Ibrahim, and during an appearance on Sky News’ *The World With Yalda Hakim* on Monday night, Idris confirmed that direct communication lines between Abuja and Washington have been restored and are yielding results.
“Channels of communication have been opened, I can confirm that; we are talking to them, and I think they are understanding the situation better,” Idris said. “We believe that most of the information is a result of a lack of a proper understanding of the diversity and complexity of the problem we have at hand.”
The minister alleged that certain U.S.-based lobby groups with ties to a proscribed separatist organization in Nigeria are actively misinforming American authorities. “Let me also put it out there that we are seeing a direct connection between (US) lobbyists and (a) proscribed terrorist organisation in Nigeria, and we have seen how they have set up this lobby in the US, contacting high-up people in the United States to help them to lobby,” he stated.
Despite the controversy, Idris emphasized Nigeria’s appreciation for its longstanding security partnership with the U.S. and urged renewed cooperation in combating terrorism. “What we are saying is that, yes, indeed, the situation is there, we have conflict in Nigeria, we have a security situation in Nigeria, but in the past the United States government has helped Nigerian authorities to deal with this situation; so we are calling on them to partner with us once again, to help push this, and then we have peace once and for all in our country,” he said.
Idris expressed surprise at some of the data and positions advanced by U.S. officials, questioning their scientific validity. “Some of the assumptions are based on data that largely cannot stand any scientific scrutiny,” he noted, while reaffirming that Nigeria remains a multi-faith nation where the constitution enshrines religious freedom. He stressed that ongoing conflicts are not rooted in religious persecution but in broader security and socio-economic challenges.
“We want to tell the world that this is not the case, and to appeal to them, (that) we share the concern of people from our country, and we also share the concern of the international community, including the United States, about some of these killings going on,” Idris added. “But what we want at this point is an understanding of the diversity and the complexity of the situation.”
