The United Kingdom (UK) and Nigeria are holding the first meeting of the Nigeria-UK Security and Defense Partnership Dialogue at the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office headquarters at King Charles Street in London this week.
The dialogue, led by Stephen Lovegrove, UK National Security Adviser, and Babagana Monguno, Nigerian National Security Adviser, is scheduled to last for three days, and will conclude on Wednesday.
BusinessDay understands that the dialogue will also include a series of breakout sessions covering a range of issues, including counter terrorism, serious and organised crime, civilian policing and human rights.
The Nigeria-UK Security and Defense Partnership, was agreed upon between the two countries in 2018, and this week’s dialogue will be the first meeting following the 2018 agreement.
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At the start of the dialogue, Vicky Ford MP, UK government Minister for Africa, said: “Today we welcome our Nigerian friends as we open the first UK-Nigeria Security and Defense Partnership dialogue in London. By building stronger security ties we can better protect our people from shared security threats.”
Catriona Laing, British High Commissioner to Nigeria, said: “Looking forward to the UK-Nigeria Security and Defense Partnership discussions over the next few days. Great to have this chance to expand our security and defense cooperation to improve how we respond to shared security threats.”
According to the Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office and the British High Commission to Nigeria, details about the Partnership Dialogue will be shared after the dialogue later this week.
Before the 2018 agreement and since it, Nigeria and the UK have worked closely together to deepen the partnership between the two countries and tackle shared threats, bolster regional stabilisation efforts and support Nigeria’s peace-keeping capabilities.
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