The France Defence Attaché to Nigeria, Col. Stéphane Useo, has described the defence partnership between Nigeria and France as mutually reinforcing, enhancing the defence capabilities and professional standards of both nations.

Speaking during a courtesy visit to the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Waidi Shaibu, at the Army Headquarters in Abuja, Useo reiterated his country’s commitment to deepening defence cooperation with Nigeria, emphasising shared responsibility for promoting regional stability, countering emerging threats and building sustainable military capacity.

Useo commended the Army’s successful recovery operations in the Republic of Benin and advocated expanded access to strategic professional military courses, especially in Public Relations and Aviation.

The Defence Attaché noted the resilience and dedication of the Nigerian Army in addressing emerging security challenges.

He described the Nigerian Army School of Public Relations and Information (NASPRI) as one of the best institutions in Africa, established to train army personnel in civil-military affairs and enhance information and communication management.

Responding, the army chief said the partnership between Nigeria and France would be strengthened in intelligence sharing, professional military training, and support for operational readiness.

Shaibu said this is imperative to advance Nigeria’s efforts to address insecurity through sustained international defence cooperation, adding that such partnerships remain critical to Nigeria’s broader efforts to counter security threats within the region.

He reaffirmed the Nigerian Army’s commitment to continuous professional development across all corps and emphasised the need to sustain mutually beneficial bilateral defence cooperation.

The army chief expressed optimism that a long-term partnership with France, focusing on capacity building, advanced training and enhanced operational effectiveness, is in line with contemporary security realities.

The high-level engagement focused on strengthening operational cooperation between the Nigerian Army and the French Armed Forces to address evolving regional and global security challenges.

Meanwhile, two international humanitarian organisations, the Department of Field Operations, the United Nations Department of Safety and Security (UN DSS), and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), have visited the Theatre Command, Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK), in Borno State to deepen collaboration with the Theatre, aimed at delivering humanitarian assistance to vulnerable and hard-to-reach communities across the North East region.

While Mrs Florence Paussin of the UN-DSS commended OPHK for its professionalism and ongoing efforts to safeguard civilians and humanitarian workers, Mr Yanich Buvhili, who led the ICRC delegation, hailed OPHK for its support for ICRC operations, particularly in enabling access for family reunification, healthcare delivery, immunisation, and nutrition programmes.