The State Department today announced what they’re calling a “major” border security program for northeastern Nigeria, targeting the growing Boko Haram fighters around that region.
Assistant Secretary of State Linda Thomas-Greenfield expressed concern about the worsening situation in Nigeria, and indeed, Boko Haram seems to move between Nigeria and Cameroon at will, hitting towns in both nations.
It isn’t clear how the US program intends to actually stop that, and while the goal seems to be making it harder for Boko Haram fighters to cross the long border, the reality is that Boko Haram has proven pretty effective at fighting Nigerian troops at any rate, and a built up border presence just means one more target.
The State Department’s insistence that the situation is worsening is quite accurate, but also seems to be undercutting the Nigerian government’s own insistence that everything in northeastern Nigeria is going fine.
Is this an Onion piece? If the State Dept's border program is anything like what they've instituted in "the Homeland" then it's obviously going to be a money dump with no expected positive results.
America can't even control its own broken, dysfunctional border with Mexico, yet we are going to "fix" Nigeria's? LOL.
The same folks who are unable to control the southern border of the US plan to set up a "border security" program in Nigeria. No wonder the Nigerians insist that everything's fine. The last thing they need is "border security" US style.
Oh, my mistake- I was so eager to read the story I mistook 'Northern Nigeria' for 'Texas and New Mexico'.