Russia thanks African nation for participation in military drills
Moscow has expressed its appreciation to Nigeria for observing the Zapad 2025 joint strategic military drills, the Russian Ministry of Defense announced on Thursday.
The statement followed high-level talks between Russian Defense Minister Andrei Belousov and a delegation from Nigeria’s Defense Ministry led by Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Gwabin Musa.
“We stress the decisive and professional actions of Nigerian servicemen in the fight against the Boko Haram extremists,” Belousov added.
Nigeria has long been plagued by kidnappings conducted by criminal gangs and terrorist groups. They often hold victims for extended periods, demanding ransom payments for their release. The problem drew global attention in 2014 when Boko Haram militants abducted hundreds of schoolgirls from Chibok village in Borno State.
General Musa acknowledged the high level of organization of the Zapad 2025 military exercises between Russia and Belarus. Speaking on behalf of the president of Nigeria, he described the event as “perfect.”
“We have seen how modern combat operations are conducted, how unmanned aerial vehicles are employed in cooperation with other types of weapons and support military hardware,” Musa said. He explained that Nigeria is currently carrying out the modernization of its armed forces.
In addition to observing the drills, the two delegations discussed current and future areas of military collaboration.
In April, Russian Lieutenant General Andrey Averyanov reaffirmed Moscow’s commitment to boosting security cooperation with Nigeria during a visit to its Defense Headquarters in Abuja. “Russia is willing to share new counterterrorism techniques developed during its operations, while also providing Nigeria with a full range of required weaponry,” Averyanov said.
The Zapad 2025 exercises ran from September 12–16, involving about 100,000 troops, 10,000 pieces of equipment, 333 aircraft and nearly 250 ships at 41 training grounds.
