America Turns Up the Heat: Sanctions, Military Action on the Table as Nigeria Reenters CPC List

Trump Administration Threatens Aid Freeze, Pentagon Involvement as Religious-Freedom Concerns Reach Boiling Point
The diplomatic temperature between Washington and Abuja has surged sharply as the United States weighs a sweeping package of sanctions, aid restrictions, and potential Pentagon engagement to pressure Nigeria into taking stronger action to protect Christian communities amid a surge in religiously-linked violence.

A senior U.S. State Department official, Jonathan Pratt, revealed before the House Foreign Affairs Committee on Thursday that President Donald Trump’s administration is “developing a plan to incentivize and compel the Nigerian government to better protect Christian communities and improve religious freedom.”

Pratt, who leads the State Department’s Bureau of African Affairs, said the White House is evaluating measures across multiple agencies — including the State Department, Treasury Department, and what President Trump has rebranded as the Department of War — to increase pressure on Abuja. Among the tools on the table: targeted sanctions, military conditionalities, and expanded U.S. counterterrorism involvement inside Nigeria.

Aid Under Scrutiny as U.S. Toughens Tone

Pratt disclosed that Washington is conducting a comprehensive review of all security assistance it provides to Nigeria — scrutinizing not just how the aid is deployed but its effectiveness and whether intelligence-sharing arrangements are being properly utilized.

Shortly after testifying during the @HouseForeignGOP hearing on “President Trump’s Redesignation of Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC),” Pratt posted a statement on X emphasizing the gravity of the President’s stance:

> “The President’s decision underscores the Administration’s commitment to promoting religious freedom as a universal right. The levels of violence and atrocities committed against Christians and communities of all faiths in Nigeria are appalling and threaten this right. We remain open to working with the Nigerians, but we expect results on the ground.”
The warning aligns with Trump’s earlier threat in November, when he cautioned that the U.S. “would not hesitate to take military action” if Nigeria fails to curb attacks on Christians. The President also announced a sweeping halt to all U.S. aid to Nigeria — a move that has rattled Abuja’s diplomatic circles.

Nigerian officials have consistently denied accusations of systemic religious persecution, insisting that the country’s overlapping crises — from ethnic tensions to resource-based clashes and the long-running Boko Haram insurgency — are often misinterpreted by foreign observers.

In October, however, Washington escalated its concerns by returning Nigeria to the list of “Countries of Particular Concern” over alleged religious-freedom violations.

Jacob McGee, Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, said the CPC designation had “captured the attention” of Nigerian authorities but warned that “a lot more needs to be done.”

High-Level Nigerian Delegation Rushes to Washington

Amid rising pressure, a powerful Nigerian delegation — including the National Security Adviser, Chief of Defence Staff, Defence Intelligence Chief, and Inspector General of Police — arrived in Washington this week for closed-door talks with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau and senior Pentagon officials.

While addressing lawmakers, Pratt pushed back against speculation that jihadist elements had infiltrated Nigeria’s federal government. McGee, however, stressed that the U.S. plans to intensify on-the-ground engagement with Nigerian security and political actors to deliver what he described as a blunt message:

> “They have to do better.”

A Nation at a Crossroads

Nigeria — home to over 200 ethnic groups and a complex tapestry of Christian, Muslim, and traditional religious traditions — has long balanced episodes of religious harmony with bursts of violent sectarian conflict. The Boko Haram insurgency alone has claimed tens of thousands of lives over the past 15 years, most of them Muslim, according to human-rights groups.

But U.S. officials say the worsening attacks on Christian communities, and Abuja’s perceived inability or unwillingness to stop them, have forced Washington to consider unprecedented diplomatic and military pressure.

If implemented, the proposed U.S. measures would mark one of the most significant shifts in American policy toward Nigeria in decades — setting the stage for a potentially historic diplomatic confrontation between the two nations.