Tuggar: Nigeria Will Not Accept Venezuelan Deportees Due to US Pressure
Yusuf Tuggar, Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, has stated that the country will not accept Venezuelan deportees from the United States. This announcement follows reports that the US is exerting pressure on various African nations to take in Venezuelan deportees, including those currently imprisoned.
In a recent interview on Channels TV’s Politics Today, Tuggar highlighted that Nigeria is already facing a rapidly growing population and numerous other pressing issues.
“It would be difficult for countries like Nigeria to accommodate Venezuelan prisoners,” he remarked. “We have our own challenges to address; we cannot take in Venezuelan deportees. Our population is currently at 230 million,” Tuggar further noted.
There have been rumors suggesting that Nigeria’s refusal to accept asylum seekers from the US contributed to the recent visa restrictions imposed on the country by President Donald Trump. The US government cited an alleged lack of visa reciprocity from Nigeria as the reason for these stringent measures, although no specific details were disclosed.
Claims—later debunked—indicated that Nigeria initiated this policy change by halting the issuance of five-year visas to American citizens.
“What Nigeria has done differently is quite clear. We used to have a visa-on-arrival system that was not functioning properly. We have now introduced an online electronic visa system that allows for advance applications, which is more efficient than the previous process of obtaining a visa upon arrival,” he clarified.
Tuggar mentioned that discussions with the US are ongoing to resolve this matter. However, he emphasized that Nigeria will not serve as a destination for Venezuelan prisoners deported from the US amid Trump’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
Nigeria has called on the US to reassess its position, appealing to the principles of partnership, cooperation, and shared global responsibilities.
