A Washington‑based lobbying firm has alleged that a proposed U.S.–Nigeria mining memorandum of understanding was linked to President Bola Tinubu’s efforts to secure a meeting with former U.S. President Donald Trump.
Von Batten‑Montague‑York, which works for former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, said the MOU was announced by the Nigerian government last week and was intended to be signed at the United Nations.
“The signing of the U.S.–Nigeria mining MOU is the first step of cooperation between the United States and Nigeria that serves America’s interests in having access to critical metals and minerals while improving the Nigerian mining industry,” the firm stated. “This MOU was first announced by the Nigerian government last week and was meant to be signed at the UN with President Bola Tinubu. It was one of the proposals that Nigerian President Bola Tinubu had allegedly offered in exchange for a meeting with President Donald Trump.”
The firm claimed that outreach to the Trump administration resulted in the article being taken down, the UN signing being cancelled, and Tinubu remaining in France. It added that Trump signed other agreements at the UN instead.
According to the statement, the United States secured access to critical metals and minerals, while President Tinubu did not receive the meeting it sought.
<small>Source: Daily Post Nigeria — read the original story there.</small>
