Nigerian Foreign Affairs Minister Tuggar Meets With Chinese Counterpart Wang Yi In Abuja

Nigeria's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, is currently in a meeting with China's Foreign Minister, Wang Yi, and other members of his delegation at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abuja.

This meeting highlights the growing diplomatic relations between Nigeria and China.

Tuggar in a post on his X account on Thursday said the meeting will focus on deepening collaboration in areas of mutual interest and enhancing economic partnerships.

He said, “In an effort to further strengthen #NigeriaChinaRelations, I look forward to engaging with my counterpart, Mr. Wang Yi, the Foreign Minister of China, during his two-day visit to Nigeria as part of his diplomatic tour across Africa.

“Our discussions will focus on deepening collaboration in areas of mutual interest, enhancing economic partnerships, and exploring new opportunities for cooperation.”

“This dialogue will be a step forward in solidifying the longstanding relationship between our two countries,” he added.

Wang Yi’s diplomatic tour of Africa entails visits to Namibia, the Republic of the Congo, Chad, and Nigeria from January 5 to 11.

This trip marks the 35th consecutive year that China's foreign minister has chosen Africa as the destination for their first overseas trip of the year.

Wang Yi's visit is at the invitation of these countries.

According to Mao Ning, spokesperson for China's foreign ministry, this journey highlights the importance of maintaining strong ties with African nations.

Chinese President Xi Jinping made some proposals at the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation last year.

He suggested upgrading bilateral relations between China and African countries with diplomatic ties to strategic relations, and elevating China-Africa relations to an "all-weather community with a shared future" for the new era.

This vision is built on advancing modernization in six key areas and implementing 10 partnership actions, which aim to strengthen cooperation in areas like trade, industrialization, infrastructure development, and people-to-people exchanges.

These actions include initiatives like building a platform for governance experience sharing, a China-Africa knowledge network, and 25 centers for China and Africa studies.

The African side responded positively to these proposals, according to Mao's statement at a press conference last Friday.