Abducted Girls: China to assist in rescuing Chibok girls
The Peoples Republic of China has promised to help Nigeria in rescuing the abducted schoolgirls of Chibok, Borno State. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang made the promise at the Presidential Villa in Abuja today during a bilateral talk he had with President Goodluck Jonathan. This was barely a day after the United States of America offered […]
The Peoples Republic of China has promised to help Nigeria in rescuing the abducted schoolgirls of Chibok, Borno State.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang made the promise at the Presidential Villa in Abuja today during a bilateral talk he had with President Goodluck Jonathan.
This was barely a day after the United States of America offered to deploy security personnel and assets to Nigeria in order to help rescue the schoolgirls.
At a joint press conference after the bilateral talk, President Jonathan disclosed that the Chinese government promised to help Nigeria fight terrorism and sustain her sovereignty.
He said he and Keqiang agreed to deepen cooperation in the field of defence and security as well as strengthen cooperation in counter terrorism, anti-piracy and combating organised crimes.
“The premier promised that China will assist Nigeria in our fight against terror, especially our commitment and efforts to rescue the girls that were taken away from a Secondary School in Chibok, Borno State,” he said.
Jonathan added that the Chinese government had also promised to help Nigeria in her efforts towards developing such infrastructure as power, transportation.
“We agreed to encourage our bastions, companies to further deepen cooperation in infrastructure development especially the railways, power plants and airports. We also agreed that the economic cooperation zones established by the Chinese enterprise in Nigeria have achieved tangible progress and that those enterprises should be encouraged to invest in various fields of the Nigerian economy”, he said.
Jonathan said they also agreed that the central banks of both countries should promote local currency settlements to facilitate bilateral trade and investment.
In his remarks, Keqiang, who was on an official visit to Nigeria, stressed the need for both countries to strengthen their relationship and work together to fight terrorism, describing Nigeria as a major country in Africa.
In a communique issued after the meeting, Jonathan and Keqiang resolved to deepen cooperation in the areas of defence and security.
The communique read in part: “Both sides agreed that as members of the UN Security Council, they would continue to strengthen coordination and cooperation in the council. They expressed their resolve to strengthen coordination and cooperation in African peace and security affairs. The Nigerian side expressed appreciation for China’s efforts to actively participate in the meditation of hot spot issues in Africa”.