Nigeria’s military has indicated on Thursday that it could follow the example of Sri Lanka in fighting terror, to bring an end to an increasingly deadly insurgency by Boko Haram militants.
A high-ranking military delegation from Sri Lanka, led by Chief of Defence Staff General Jagath Jayasuriya, was in the capital, Abuja, to meet their Nigerian counterparts to share experience and expertise. The visit came after Pakistan’s President Mamnoon Hussain held talks with his opposite number, Goodluck Jonathan, on Tuesday and the leaders pledged greater co-operation in defence and counter-terrorism.
According to a statement from Nigeria’s defence headquarters, General Jagath Jayasuriya told delegates there were similarities between the security situation in Nigeria and Sri Lanka at the height of the conflict with the tiger terrorists.
According to the statement, Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, said they were “seriously considering the counter-insurgency experience of the Sri Lankan military with a view to identifying those areas that could be operationally beneficial to Nigeria in its battle to defeat terrorism.” It said Sri Lanka was “acclaimed as having achieved the reputation of effectively defeating terrorism in its territory”, it added.
During a briefing session, the Sri Lankans told their Nigerian counterparts about “total security”, which was described as “the translation of all the nation’s assets into military power to counter the scourge of terrorism”.
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