Security experts and Civil Society Organisations have asked the United States troops to limit engagement to intelligence support and the capacity of Nigerian troops to dislodge terrorists.
This comes after the Commander, US Africa Command, General Dagvin R.M. Anderson, on Tuesday confirmed deployment of a small US team in Nigeria.
His confirmation comes after President of the United States, Donald Trump, threatened to deploy ground troops in Nigeria in the wake of Christian Killings and made true his threats with a strike on terrorist locations in Sokoto State on 25 December 2025.
Nigeria's Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (Rtd), also confirmed the deployment of US troops in Nigeria to a foreign media outlet.
Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines
A former NAF Chief of Logistics, former NAF Spokesman and one-time Nigeria's Defence Attache to Russia, AVM Olatokunbo Adesanya (Rtd), suggested that the team focus on intelligence and coordination.
He said, "I do not foresee the deployed troops engaging in actual combat in Nigeria. I would imagine that support for the deployed US troops would focus on intelligence, as well as possibly coordinating and facilitating logistics procurement to enhance the performance of the Armed Forces of Nigeria.
He continued, "Nigeria needs all the assistance it can get from other countries to successfully combat insecurity. In that sense and within the existence of an appropriate legal framework, I see the development as a net positive for Nigeria in its counterterrorism efforts.
"I would be excited to also know that the US is providing adequate geospatial intelligence that would, for instance, enable the discovery of mass movements, especially in the vast ungoverned spaces, target identification and mission planning, amongst others,".
He added that a kinetic approach alone would not suffice in successfully combating the Nation's security challenges.
The Head of Transparency International and the Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, said Nigeria's security challenges created room for foreign intervention.
This, he said, is due to how the Nigerian government handled " insecurity, safety and protection of the citizens, they importantly created conditions for the foreign countries to come in directly.
"So we welcome any effort that can strengthen the capacity of the Nigerian state to overcome the challenges of insecurity in Nigeria through training, through strengthening Nigerian defence mechanisms and defence factory."
He said that, though the country has its own Defence Industry, which is supposed to be producing arms and ammunition, it was limited.
He therefore urged the US team to improve and strengthen the Nigerian air force's ability to navigate, trace and secure the nation from terrorists or criminals.
He said, "What we want to avoid is a situation whereby the coming of the foreign troops would just undermine the capacity or the ability of the Nigerian security forces to carry out their responsibility."
He added, "We don't want the foreign troops to do one off and then go. We want them to help strengthen the capacity of the Nigerian security, particularly the military, to handle both terrorism and other foreign threats by criminals in Nigeria."
Speaking further, Rafsanjani, who is the Chairman of the Board of Amnesty International, Nigeria, said the military must do what is right and obey all Nigerian laws and International laws.
"They should pay more attention to providing capacity, enhancing our defence factory, and ensuring that they provide new facilities and equipment that the Nigerian army or Nigerian soldier will use. However, if they are the ones who will go and begin the attack by themselves, that will demoralise and discourage the Nigerian soldiers from playing their primary responsibility."
He tasked the US team and government with providing facilities, equipment, training, intelligence, and then Nigerian security to do the work.
"Let the foreign soldiers provide intelligence so that it will not be a one-off operation. We don't want a one-off operation. We want to see a continued relationship, especially in terms of training, sharing of intelligence, and providing the facilities and equipment," he stressed.
A Security Consultant, Dr Abdullahi Muhammed Jabi, who is the Director, Media and Publicity, International Institute of Professional Security (IIPS), said the deployment was a demonstration of the United States' and the Nigerian Government's commitment to ending terrorism in the country.
He called for collaboration among the forces, leveraging each other's strengths.
"It's a welcome development because the Nigerian government is aware. That shows that we have been able to assert our authority as a sovereign nation. And that they will give them the road map on where they should go, so they will be able to have positive intelligence and technology that will speed up the process of eliminating those enemies of the state,".
He said the development gave more resources and confidence that the federal government is really "ready to resolve the issue of insecurity that was created in the first place at the initial stage by politicians themselves for personal and service interests at the core of the economy."
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
He said that while the US has superior intelligence capabilities, it will also need Nigerian boots on the ground to execute them.
"They have technology to use to assess the exact area of attack. You saw what happened in Nigeria now, the wrong attack on civilians, children and women by the Nigerian Air Force.
"So with the arrival now, precisely, you'll be able to meet targets."
He reiterated that both the kinetic and non-kinetic approaches will all be put into this war against insecurity in Nigeria, "so that we'll be able to reclaim our territory and be able to give confidence to Nigerian citizens so that farmers can get back to farming. The women can get back to doing their socioeconomic activities,".
He cautioned that "nobody should see it as an attempt to undermine the sovereignty of Nigeria. No, no, it's not possible. It's a partnership that works for good for the Nigerian people and for all citizens and for the global community".
He warned that, if Nigeria, with its huge population, were to slide into chaos, it would destabilise the global community.
"Because this is the last wire of the world itself. Which country is going to accommodate approximately 270 million Nigerians? So it's a very healthy one."
