Nigeria’s Foreign Minister Yusuf Tugal apologizes for Burkina Faso military flight

Nigeria’s Foreign Minister Yusuf Tougall has formally apologized to Burkina Faso for the unauthorized entry of a Nigerian military aircraft into Burkina Faso’s airspace, which resulted in the detention of 11 Nigerian military personnel.

Tugar’s spokesman told the BBC that the detained men had been released and would return to Nigeria, but did not say when.

According to the Nigerian Air Force, the aircraft experienced technical problems while en route to Portugal and had to land in Burkina Faso.

The unauthorized landing triggered a diplomatic row with the Alliance of Sahel States (AES), which consists of Burkina Faso and its neighbors Mali and Niger.

In a statement, AES described it as an “unfriendly act” and said the member states’ respective air forces were on maximum alert and authorized to “suppress any aircraft violating the alliance’s airspace.”

Three military-run AES countries have withdrawn from the West African regional bloc ECOWAS and moved closer to Russia, while most ECOWAS members remain aligned with the West.

Tougal led a delegation to Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou on Wednesday to discuss the incident with military leader Captain Ibrahim Traoré.

“There were regrettable irregularities in the overflight authorization and we apologize for this unfortunate incident,” Tugar said on state television.

It is unclear when the military personnel and aircraft, which were said to be “high-spirited”, will return to Nigeria.

According to Nigeria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the two sides agreed to “maintain regular consultations and take practical measures to deepen bilateral cooperation and regional integration.”