China on Tuesday said it “firmly supports” the Nigerian government in “leading its people on the development path suited to its national conditions,” following the White House’s threat of possible military action over the alleged “killing of Christians” in Nigeria.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning disclosed this while speaking at a news conference in Beijing on Tuesday.
Mao Ning was asked for China’s response to US President Donald Trump’s designation of Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” and his order for the military to prepare action against Islamist militant groups in the country.
She responded that “As Nigeria’s comprehensive strategic partner, China firmly supports the Nigerian government in leading its people on the development path suited to its national conditions.”
Mao Ning added that China “firmly opposes any country using religion and human rights as an excuse to interfere in other countries’ internal affairs and threatening other countries with sanctions and force.”
US President Donald Trump on Saturday ordered the military to prepare for action in Nigeria to tackle Islamist militant groups, accusing the Nigerian government of failing to protect Christians in the country.
Trump claimed that Christianity is facing an “existential threat” in Nigeria while accusing “radical Islamists” of being responsible for “mass slaughter”.
He wrote in a social media post that he had instructed the US Department of War to prepare for “possible action”.
The US president said, “If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the U.S.A. will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria, and may very well go into that now disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing,’ to completely wipe out the Islamic terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities,” Trump wrote.
“I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians! WARNING: THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT BETTER MOVE FAST!”
US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth then replied to the post by writing, “Yes, sir.
“The Department of War is preparing for action. Either the Nigerian Government protects Christians, or we will kill the Islamic Terrorists who are committing these horrible atrocities.”
Trumps’s threat of military action came a day after his administration added Nigeria back to a “Countries of Particular Concern” list of nations that the U.S. says have violated religious freedoms. Other nations on the list include China, Myanmar, North Korea, Russia and Pakistan.
But the Nigerian government has repeatedly dismissed Christian persecution allegations by some foreign officials, especially from the United States, and claims that Nigeria does not discriminate against any faith group.
The federal government, however, insists that the country remain a tolerant nation that guarantees freedom of religion for all citizens.
The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, described the claims, particularly by some United States officials, as misleading and not reflective of Nigeria’s security realities while speaking on CNN on Tuesday night.
According to the minister, some of the claims made by officials of the United States are based on faulty data and assumptions that the victims of the violence are largely Christians.
“Yes, there are Christians being attacked, but these criminals do not just target one religion. They target Christians and also target Muslims. We have seen that especially in the northern part of the country,” Idris clarified.
The minister warned that such narratives could inflame religious tensions, stressing that the government was committed to ensuring harmony and security for all Nigerians.
“Those promoting such claims are unwittingly playing into the hands of criminals whose ultimate objective is to incite conflict between Christians and Muslims,” he said.
