The Nigerian government has asked Russia to withdraw its
troops from Ukraine and embrace diplomatic measures to address the current
crisis involving both countries.
Geoffrey Onyeama, minister of foreign affairs, said this on
Friday after a meeting with the envoys of the G7 countries in Nigeria.
Months of tensions between Russia and Ukraine took another
dimension on Thursday with airstrikes recorded in Ukraine.
As of Friday morning, Ukrainian President Volodymyr
Zelenskyy said at least 137 Ukrainian soldiers and civilians had been killed
since the Russian invasion began.
In a televised address on Friday, Russian President Vladimir
Putin called on the Ukrainian military to seize power in their country.
Speaking on the development after the meeting, Onyeama said
the Nigerian government has advised the adoption of peacebuilding initiatives
to resolve the conflict.
“Peace and diplomacy to be prioritised by both sides,” NAN
quoted him as saying.
“We support every
effort being made to stop the aggression and Russian troops to return to
Russia.”
Also speaking to journalists after the meeting which held
behind closed doors, Birgitt Ory, German ambassador to Nigeria who also chairs
the G7 group, commended the African Union (AU) for condemning the invasion.
The German ambassador commended Nigeria for taking a
position, adding that the federal government’s stance is an important voice the
world needs to hear.
Ory added that there would be resolutions taken by the
United Nations Security Council, as well as the General Assembly, on the
invasion.
In attendance at the meeting were Mary Beth Leonard, United
States ambassador to Nigeria; Catriona Laing, British high commissioner to
Nigeria; Samuela Isopi, head of the European Union delegation to Nigeria and
the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), as well as
representatives of the embassies of Japan and Canada.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com