Russian, Nigerian defense ministers meet in Moscow

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW (AA) - Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov on Thursday held negotiations with Chief of Staff of the Nigerian Armed Forces Gen. Christopher Gwabin Musa.

At the meeting in Moscow, Belousov congratulated members of the African nation's delegation on the approaching 65th anniversary of the proclamation of independence of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

He thanked them for participating as observers in the joint strategic exercise Zapad-2025 and conveyed best wishes to his Nigerian counterpart Mohammed Abubakar.

“We note the decisive and professional actions of Nigerian servicemen in combating extremists from Boko Haram,” he said.

Musa expressed gratitude and appreciation for organizing the meeting.

"We are grateful for the exceptional preparation of the Zapad-2025 exercises, which were conducted excellently. We saw how modern types of combat operations are carried out, including the use of unmanned aerial vehicles interacting with other types of weapons and special military equipment," he said.

He noted that it was important for the Nigerian armed forces, who are undergoing a period of modernization, to attend the drills.

Current and prospective areas of cooperation between the defense ministries of the two countries were also discussed.

The Russian-Belarusian military drill Zapad-2025 involving some 100,000 servicemen took place on Sept.12-16 on 41 training grounds in Russia and Belarus as well as in the Baltic and Barents seas.