Presidential Jets Seizure: States Should Stop Entering International Deals Alone — Foreign Affairs Minister

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, says sub-national actors such as states should not enter foreign or international negotiations without the input of the ministry of foreign affairs or the Federal Government.

He was speaking on the efforts being made to resolve the dispute with a Chinese company which has led to the seizure of three jets of the Federal Government by a French court.

The court ruled that Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment should use Nigeria’s jets at the Paris-Le Bourget and Basel-Mulhouse international airports as “security for its claim of EUR 74,459,221”.

“Yes, the Attorney General and I are working on it both diplomatically and then from legal perspective as well to ensure that this issue is resolved,” he said.

“This is part of the problem when sub-national actors like state governments take it upon themselves to go into agreements, go into international arrangements, without recourse to the ministry of foreign affairs, without recourse to the federal government, and then when it goes awry, we are left with the problem to deal with.

“That is why it is always important that such arrangements should be registered with the mission there, with the embassy, with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and with the federal government.

“This is something that Ogun state, under a different administration, not this governor, entered into that we’re not aware of. All we know is that they’re going after Nigerian assets.

“That’s why, really, foreign or international negotiations are not the purview of sub-national actors.

“You should always have those that are experienced in such an area that have the necessary skills and the necessary training to negotiate these sorts of agreements.”