Abuja: Nigeria and Saudi Arabia have signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deepen defence and military cooperation, marking a significant step in strengthening bilateral ties and enhancing regional security collaboration.
The agreement was signed by Nigeria’s Minister of State for Defence, Dr Bello Mohammed Matawalle, and Saudi Arabia’s Assistant Minister of Defence for Executive Affairs, Dr Khaled Al-Biyari.
This is contained in the statement signed by the Assistant Director, Information and Public Relations, Enderline Chukwu, on Tuesday in Abuja.
Matawalle described the MoU as “a significant milestone” that would strengthen Nigeria’s defence architecture and enhance the armed forces’ capacity.
According to him, the agreement will strengthen Nigeria’s defence architecture and enhance the capacity of the country’s armed forces.
He said the MoU would be in force for an initial period of five years, covering cooperation in training, joint exercises, intelligence sharing, technical assistance, logistics and other mutually agreed defence activities.
“It may be reviewed and renewed for another five years, while either party may terminate it with three months’ diplomatic notice.
“The MoU is expected to deliver tangible gains for Nigeria, including improved professional military education, enhanced operational readiness through joint exercises and strengthened counter-terrorism cooperation,” he said.
