US President Donald Trump on Sunday reiterated his threat to launch a military operation in Nigeria over the alleged killing of Christians, a day after the Nigerian presidency called for dialogue to address his concerns.
Asked by reporters aboard Air Force One whether he was considering deploying US troops or conducting airstrikes, Trump replied: “Could be — I mean, a lot of things. I envisage a lot of things.”
“They’re killing the Christians and killing them in very large numbers. We’re not going to allow that to happen,” he added.
On Saturday, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that he had asked the Pentagon to prepare “a possible plan of attack” in Nigeria, warning that Christianity faced “an existential threat” in Africa’s most populous nation.
He said that if Nigeria failed to stop the killings, the United States would act, promising a response that would be “fast, vicious, and sweet — just like the terrorist thugs attack our cherished Christians.”
Reacting to Trump’s comments, Nigerian presidential spokesman Daniel Bwala told AFP that Nigeria remained a key US partner in the global fight against terrorism and welcomed cooperation based on mutual respect.
“Nigeria welcomes US support to fight terrorism as long as it respects our territorial integrity,” Bwala said.
He downplayed Trump’s remarks, suggesting they were meant to spur diplomatic engagement rather than signal imminent conflict.
“We do not take the post in a literal sense. We know that Donald Trump has his own style of communication,” he said, adding that the comments could “pave the way for a meeting between the two leaders to form a common front against insecurity.”
Bwala hinted that such a meeting could take place soon, either in Abuja or Washington, but declined to provide details.
In a separate post on Friday, Trump claimed that “thousands of Christians are being killed” in Nigeria and blamed “Radical Islamists” for the violence.
The Nigerian government, however, rejected his characterization, saying jihadist and bandit attacks in the country have affected people of all faiths.
“The portrayal of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality,” President Bola Tinubu said on social media Saturday.
