Trump’s Intervention in Nigeria Would Be the Stupidest, Foolish Move He Has Done —Lawrence Freeman

In an interview on Trust TV, Lawrence Freeman said that initiating military action in Nigeria could trigger major instability across the region. He pointed to past interventions in Northern Africa, which produced unintended consequences, and warned that a US-led military operation could destabilize Nigeria and fuel violent extremism in West Africa. U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats toward Nigeria could have serious consequences, according to American analyst Lawrence Freeman.

Freeman, who has visited Nigeria more than 16 times since 1994 and worked closely with government officials, military leaders, and development projects, emphasized the importance of addressing the root causes of insecurity. His work includes supporting initiatives like the Transaqua Project to restore Lake Chad and participating in conferences aimed at promoting economic growth and regional stability. He stressed that policies focused on development and poverty reduction are better suited to curbing violent extremism than military action.

“Now, when you start military activity, kinetic warfare, you then open up a whole potential of disasters. With Trump’s intervention, he would be in the same league as President Obama, who destroyed Northern Africa and essentially helped Boko Haram and AQIM grow by overthrowing Gaddafi in October 2011, 14 years ago. Would Trump’s actions reproduce that same effect throughout West Africa? It’s possible. It would be the stupidest, foolish move that Trump has done. I don’t think it will occur, but because I think he’s a little bit unstable mentally, there is a potential that it could occur. We have to do everything we can now to prevent it by proposing solutions and alternate policies, such as promoting economic growth for Nigeria, which would eliminate much of the poverty that fuels violent extremism,” Freeman said.