U.S. officials had traveled to Niger last week to express concerns about the country's potential development of ties to Russia and Iran before the ruling junta on Saturday revoked a key military accord allowing U.S. military personnel in the country, the Pentagon said on Monday.
General Abdourahamane Tiani, leader of the junta in Niger and author of the 2023 coup © ASP
U.S. officials had traveled to Niger last week to express concerns about the country's potential development of ties to Russia and Iran before the ruling junta on Saturday revoked a key military accord allowing U.S. military personnel in the country, the Pentagon said on Monday.
"The U.S. delegation was there to raise a number of concerns ... We were troubled (about) the path that Niger is on. And so these were direct and frank conversations, to have those in person, to talk about our concerns and to also hear theirs," said Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh.
Asked to clarify those concerns, Singh said: "U.S. officials expressed concern over Niger's potential relationships with Russia and Iran."
Reporting by Phil Stewart
Ship traffic through Bab el-Mandeb fell on Sunday after Yemeni Houthis attacked Saudi oil installations along the Red Sea coast, while transit through the Strait of Hormuz stayed low over the weekend, shipping data from Kpler showed on Monday.
President Donald Trump said on Saturday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will visit the U.S. next week.
Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militants fired on Saudi oil installations in two ports on the Red Sea coast on Saturday, but the United States held back from launching air strikes on Iran itself for the first night in two weeks.
To make this website run properly and to improve your experience, we use cookies. For more detailed information, please check our Cookie Policy.
Necessary cookies enable core functionality. The website cannot function properly without these cookies, and can only be disabled by changing your browser preferences.