Major General Dagvin Anderson, the commander of U.S. Special Operations Command Africa (USSOCAF), on Tuesday, said the United States had provided Nigeria with C-208 surveillance aircraft.
HumAngle, however, gathered that the U.S. has not provided Nigeria with the said C-208 surveillance aircraft.
“We have partnered with great effect with Nigeria in counterterrorism in the past.
“We’ve had good engagements with their air force in particular and providing C-208 capability, which is a light, fixed-wing ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance, and Reconnaissance),” Anderson said.
Meanwhile, as HumAngle gathered, Nigeria’s neighbour Niger Republic was the beneficiary and operator of Cessna C-208 donated by the United States.
On March 16, the U.S. Embassy’s Office of Security Cooperation co-hosted the Cessna aircraft program “10,000 flight hour” celebration with the Nigerien Air Force at Air Base 101 in Niamey.
Between 2013 and 2015 Nigerien Air Force (NAF) received four Cessna 208 Caravan aircraft from the U.S., configured for casualty evacuation and ISR, as part of the United States’ security cooperation and support to Niger Republic.
On Tuesday, the USSOCAF online briefing to reporters on United States Counterterrorism and partnership effort in Africa also highlighted US support for maritime security, training and intelligence sharing.
The U.S. provides Nigeria with important security and counterterrorism support for intelligence sharing, combat; and human rights training for Nigerian military personnel and maritime security cooperation.
In January 2016, The U.S. donated 25 mine-resistant, ambush-protected (MRAP) vehicles valued at $11 million to Nigeria to help combat Boko Haram.
The U.S.-donated Caiman and MaxPro MRAPs are reported to be important assets that have helped improve protection against Improvised explosive devices and ambushes in the Northeast region.
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