Turkey has agreed to train 200 Nigerian special forces in a major boost to Nigeria’s defence capacity, marking a significant step in growing military cooperation between both countries.
Christopher Musa, Nigeria’s minister of defence, revealed the development after meeting with Yaşar Güler on the sidelines of the 5th Antalya Diplomacy Forum (ADF2026) on Saturday.
“We have a special forces training agreement. Türkiye has agreed to give us 200 special forces training, so as soon as I return, we are sending them here for training,” Musa said, according to a NAN report.
He added that the partnership goes beyond training, hinting at deeper military collaboration between both nations.
“We will continue to do a lot. There will be exercises. The first exercise is coming up later in the year. So, in so many areas of defence, we are going to work together
Musa also disclosed that both countries are moving towards joint defence production and technology transfer, a move expected to strengthen Nigeria’s local military manufacturing capacity.
“I’ve had a meeting with the Turkish Minister of Defence, where we shared a lot of ideas on how to improve our relationship, defence-wise,” he said.
“Türkiye has improved dramatically with regard to the production of military hardware.
“Nigeria is still developing, and we have agreed that we are going to partner together so that we have a co-production of some of these items.”
He stressed that the collaboration is driven by shared security challenges, particularly in combating terrorism.
“Because of that, we will move into training, production and improving on our defence, industrial production, and exchange of officers and soldiers.”
Turkey has increasingly positioned itself as a strategic ally in Nigeria’s fight against insurgency and terrorism. During Bola Tinubu’s state visit earlier this year, both countries signed nine agreements aimed at strengthening bilateral ties, including defence cooperation.
In February, Mehmet Poroy reaffirmed Turkey’s readiness to deepen military ties, noting that both nations face similar threats.
He said Turkey is prepared to share its capabilities and resources with Nigeria as part of efforts to tackle insecurity more effectively.
