China has voiced strong support for Nigeria following threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to launch military action over alleged persecution of Christians in the West African nation.
Speaking at a press briefing on Tuesday, Mao Ning, spokesperson for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said Beijing stands firmly with Nigeria as it continues on its chosen path of development.
“As Nigeria’s comprehensive strategic partner, China firmly supports the Nigerian government as it leads its people on a development path suited to its national conditions.”
“China opposes any country using religion and human rights as an excuse to meddle in other countries’ internal affairs or to threaten them with sanctions or the use of force,” Ning said.
Ning’s remarks followed comments by Trump over the weekend in which he accused the Nigerian government of failing to stop the “killing of Christians” and warned of possible U.S. military intervention.
“If the Nigerian government continues to allow the killing of Christians, the United States will immediately halt all aid and assistance to Nigeria and may very well move into that now disgraced country, guns blazing, to wipe out the Islamic terrorists committing these atrocities,” Trump had declared in a fiery post on Truth Social.
He added that he had directed the U.S. Department of War to “prepare for possible action,” promising any strike would be “fast, vicious, and sweet.”
The Nigerian government has consistently rejected claims of systematic persecution of Christians. Responding to the U.S. leader’s comments, President Bola Tinubu reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to religious freedom and mutual coexistence.
