Niger: New instructors and military equipment arrive from Russia
New Russian instructors arrived in Niger on Saturday and handed over to the country’s authorities two batches of military equipment on two cargo planes, weeks after the arrival of other trainers, Nigerian state television said.
According to Niger State television, in less than a month, Russia had flown 3 cargo flights to transport various military equipment and brought several trainers from the Russian army to Niamey.
They didn’t have permission to broadcast the ‘arrival of the second flight’ for national security reasons, according to what the state television said, noting that the third flight, along with military equipment and trainers, also transported a large amount of various food products to Niger.
The African Legion, seen as the successor to the paramilitary company Wagner on the African continent, confirmed its arrival in Niger.
The developments come as US forces prepare to withdraw from Niger, after the Transitional Military Council canceled the existing military cooperation agreement between Niamey and Washington.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Thursday that Russian soldiers were stationed at a Nigerien air base housing US soldiers near Niamey airport.
The United States, in particular, has a large drone base near Agadez, at a cost of about $100 million.
