Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning expressed support for the government of Nigeria on Tuesday and claimed President Donald Trump was only interested in the slaughter of Christians as an “excuse” to interfere in Nigerian politics.
President Trump on Saturday criticized Nigeria for allowing Islamic terrorists to murder Christians and said the United States might cut off aid to Nigeria or even launch a military action to take out the terrorists.
“I am hereby instructing our Department of War to prepare for possible action. If we attack, it will be fast, vicious, and sweet, just like the terrorist thugs attack our CHERISHED Christians!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
On Monday, the State Department officially designated Nigeria as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC) for engaging in “severe violations of religious freedom.” Other countries with the CPC designation include China, Cuba, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Saudi Arabia.
President Trump designated Nigeria as a CPC in December 2020, but the designation was lifted by President Joe Biden in 2021.
Nigerian President Bola Tinubu denied President Trump’s accusations and insisted his government has done everything possible to “safeguard freedom of religion and beliefs for all Nigerians.” The Chinese Foreign Ministry signaled its support for Tinubu on Monday.
“As Nigeria’s comprehensive strategic partner, China firmly supports the Nigerian government in leading its people on the development path suited to its national conditions,” said foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao.
“China firmly opposes any country using religion and human rights as an excuse to interfere in other countries’ internal affairs, and threatening other countries with sanctions and force,” she said.
China has long attacked Western ideals of human rights, claiming ideals such as free speech and freedom of religion are not applicable to other societies. In the Chinese Communist imagination, all criticisms of Beijing and its allies for human rights violations are dishonest political tricks.
China has a strong economic and political partnership with Nigeria, which boasts China’s second-largest export market on the continent, exceeded only by South Africa. Nigeria joined China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) in 2018, paving the way for billions of dollars in Chinese investments.
One of the few bumps in the developing relationship between the two countries has been Nigeria’s difficulty in protecting Chinese workers and investments against terrorist attacks. Nigerian gangs have developed a penchant for kidnapping Chinese nationals and demanding huge ransoms from their employers.
The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) joined China in supporting Nigeria on Tuesday, issuing a statement that said Trump’s CPC designation of Nigeria was “misguided” and “damaging to social cohesion.”
“The terrorist threat facing West Africa targets all communities regardless of religion or ethnicity,” ECOWAS insisted.
“Such rhetoric deepens division, weakens national solidarity, and distracts from the shared responsibility of confronting extremist groups,” the statement said.
On the other hand, persecution watchdog groups and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) applauded Trump’s move, and said it was long past time to shine a light on murder of Nigeria’s Christians.
“USCIRF applauds President Trump for speaking out on the religious freedom crisis in Nigeria and making Nigeria a Country of Particular Concern. The U.S. Government can now develop a tough plan with Nigeria to ensure that perpetrators of violence are held to account, people of faith are protected, and those held hostage are rescued,” USCIRF chair Vicky Hartzler said on Monday.
“In addition to the tragic violence at the hands of nonstate actors, the United States must also hold the Nigerian government accountable for allowing the enforcement of blasphemy laws in 12 states,” added USCIRF vice chair Asif Mahmood.
“Enforcing these laws and tolerating violence targeting Christians, Muslims, and other communities justify the CPC designation. Now the administration can use this opportunity to impose Presidential Actions under the International Religious Freedom Act to incentivize needed change in the country,” Mahmood said.
Last month, a group of three dozen religious freedom advocates and groups signed a letter urging Trump to restore CPC status to Nigeria.
“The last several years have seen a burgeoning of violent attacks specifically targeting rural Christians in the country’s Middle Belt, while the government in Abuja barely lifts a finger to protect them,” the letter said.
“The Nigerian government is directly violating religious freedom by enforcing Islamic blasphemy laws that carry the death penalty and harsh prison sentences against citizens of various religions. It also demonstrably tolerates relentless aggression uniquely against Christian farming families by militant Fulani Muslim herders, who appear intent on forcibly Islamizing the Middle Belt,” the letter charged.
The signatories accused Tinubu’s government of allowing the Fulani to “attack defenseless Middle Belt Christians with complete impunity.” The Fulani, on the other hand, are suspiciously well-armed despite Nigeria’s ostensible gun ban.
“Even when warned of impending Fulani attacks, government security forces are typically unresponsive or ineffective,’ the letter noted.
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