ABUJA, Federal Capital Territory, Nigeria: The governments of Nigeria and Türkiye reached an agreement on Saturday, April 18, 2026, for the immediate deployment of 200 Nigerian Special Forces personnel to Türkiye for military training.
Okay News reports that Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, Gen. Christopher Musa, confirmed the deployment following bilateral discussions with his Turkish counterpart, Yasar Guler, at the 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Antalya.
“We have a Special Forces training agreement. Türkiye has agreed to give us 200 Special Forces trainees, so as soon as I return, we are sending them here for training,” Musa said.
The two nations agreed on joint defence equipment production and the transfer of military technology. “Nigeria is still developing, and we have agreed that we are going to partner together so that we have a co-production of some of these items,” Musa said.
Musa stated that the two nations have a long history of cooperation, adding that “since 1960, Türkiye has been like family to Nigeria.” He noted that Nigeria has fought asymmetric warfare against insurgency for 17 years, while Türkiye has experienced fighting terrorism for 40 years. “Because of that, we will move into training, production, and improving on our defence, industrial production, and exchange of officers and soldiers,” Musa said.
The three-day forum hosted participants from 150 countries, including 5,000 decision-makers, 20 heads of state, and 40 foreign ministers.
