It also raises questions about the fate of U.S. installations in the country after a withdrawal
Niger:
Russian soldiers have entered an air base in Niger housing US troops, a senior US defense official told Reuters, a move that follows a decision by the Nigerien junta to expel US troops.
The military officers running the West African country have ordered the US to withdraw its nearly 1,000 troops from the country, which until a coup last year had been a key partner in Washington's fight against insurgents who have killed thousands of people and displaced millions more people.
A senior US defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Russian forces did not mingle with US forces but used a separate hangar at Air Base 101, next to Diori Hamani International Airport in Niger's capital Niamey.
The Russian military's move, which was first reported by Reuters, brings American and Russian troops close together at a time when the countries' military and diplomatic rivalry is intensifying over the conflict in Ukraine.
It also raises questions about the fate of U.S. installations in the country after a withdrawal.
“(The situation) is not great, but manageable in the short term,” the official said.
Asked about the Reuters report, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin downplayed any risk to U.S. forces or the chance that Russian forces could get near U.S. military hardware.
“The Russians are in a separate compound and have no access to American troops or our equipment,” Austin told a news conference in Honolulu.
“I'm always focused on the safety and protection of our troops… But at this point I don't see a significant problem here in terms of our force protection.”
The Nigerien and Russian embassies in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The US and its allies have been forced to move troops from a number of African countries after coups that prompted power groups to distance themselves from Western governments. In addition to the impending departure from Niger, American troops have also left Chad in recent days, while French troops have been expelled from Mali and Burkina Faso.
At the same time, Russia is trying to strengthen relations with African countries by portraying Moscow as a friendly country without colonial baggage on the continent.
Mali, for example, has become one of Russia's closest African allies in recent years, with Wagner Group mercenaries deployed there to fight jihadist insurgents.
Russia has described relations with the United States as “below zero” over U.S. military and financial assistance to Ukraine as it tries to defend itself against invading Russian forces.
The U.S. official said Nigerien authorities had told President Joe Biden's administration that about 60 Russian troops were believed to be in Niger, but the official could not verify that number.
After the coup, the US military moved some of its troops in Niger from Air Base 101 to Air Base 201 in the city of Agadez. It was not immediately clear what U.S. military equipment was at Air Base 101.
The United States built Air Base 201 in central Niger at a cost of more than $100 million. Since 2018, it has been used to attack Islamic State and Al Qaeda fighters, Jamaat'at Nusrat al-Islam wal Muslimeen (JNIM), with armed drones.
Washington is concerned about Islamic militants in the Sahel region, which could expand without the presence of US troops and intelligence services.
Niger's decision to request the removal of US troops came after a meeting in Niamey in mid-March, when senior US officials expressed concerns about the expected arrival of Russian troops and reports that Iran was looking for raw materials in the country, including uranium .
While the U.S. message to Nigerien officials was not an ultimatum, the official said, it made clear that U.S. troops could not be on a base with Russian forces.
“They didn't take that well,” the official said.
An American two-star general has been sent to Niger to try to arrange a professional and responsible withdrawal.
While no decisions have been made on the future of U.S. forces in Niger, the official said the plan was for them to return to the home base of the U.S. Africa Command, located in Germany.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Our staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
