From Aidoghie Paulinus, Abuja
The Federal Government and the Kingdom of Spain, yesterday, met in Abuja, to strategize on ways to tackle the insecurity in the country and maritime insecurity in the Gulf of Guinea.
The agreement was reached during a bilateral meeting between the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, and his Spanish counterpart, Jose Manuel Albares Bueno.
Onyeama, said, both countries were close and deep partners, adding that Nigeria is one of the primary suppliers in the field of gas and petroleum to Spain and that alongside security, both countries would also work to improve economic relationships.
“We are delighted with the cooperation that we have in addressing insurgency, and terrorism in the Sahel and this part of Africa. We will continue to work with you, and with the global community, the UN the EU, to definitely address the security challenges that we are facing in our sub-region,and we really appreciate the support and cooperation of your country.”
Onyeama also said the visit of President Muhammadu Buhari to Spain last year, was a testament to the importance the two countries placed on their relations at the highest level.
Speaking earlier, Bueno, said, Nigeria was one of the great regional actors, the biggest economy in Africa, and an absolute pillar of ECOWAS, and sub-Saharan Africa.
“.But our bilateral relations are getting deeper, and more aspects have been covered. Security is a challenge to Nigeria, and we want to offer our support for Nigeria in this rare challenge. We express our solidarity with Nigeria in the fight against terrorism, this is a threat that Spain knows very well, because of our recent history. We commend the efforts of the Nigerian government to fight against violence, terrorism, and at the same time, we want to help Nigeria to address the root causes of these conflicts,” the Spanish minister said.