Trump also warned of aid cuts over alleged attacks on Christians, though an adviser to Nigeria’s president dismissed the remarks as a negotiating tactic.

U.S. President Donald Trump has repeated his threat of a military operation in Nigeria over the killings of Christians, and that it could be ground or air attacks.

“We welcome US assistance as long as it recognises our territorial integrity," Daniel Bwala, an adviser to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, told Reuters.