President Bola Tinubu has returned to Abuja from the Aqaba Process Heads of State and Government Meeting, which took place in Rome, Italy.
There, international leaders met to deepen cooperation against terrorism and violent extremism.
Tinubu left Nigeria on October 12 for the conference, which was supposed to begin on the 14th.
According to a State House press release released on Saturday by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the President’s visit to Rome underlined Nigeria’s commitment to regional and global security cooperation.
“President Bola Tinubu returns to Abuja today after participating in the Aqaba Process Heads of State and Government-level Meeting in Rome, Italy,” the statement read.
The Aqaba Process, the release explained, is “a counter-terrorism initiative launched by His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan in 2015” and “co-chaired by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Government of Italy.”
The Rome edition of the meeting centered on “strengthening regional and international collaboration in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism, with particular attention to West Africa.”
The high-level session was held on Wednesday, October 15, at Rome’s National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art and was attended by several global leaders, including Jordan’s King Abdullah II, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and the presidents of Nigeria, Chad, Paraguay, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Other dignitaries in attendance included Algerian Upper House President Azouz Nasri, delegations from Côte d’Ivoire, Kazakhstan, Mauritania, Senegal, and Uzbekistan, as well as special envoys and security specialists.
“The meeting was held behind closed doors,” the statement noted, underscoring the sensitivity of the discussions focused on global counterterrorism coordination.
Tinubu met with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and US President Donald Trump’s Senior Adviser on Arab and African Affairs, Massad Boulos, on the margins of the summit, where security and economic cooperation were said to be primary priorities.
He also met with Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican’s Secretary of State, for a discussion about Nigeria’s commitment to religious tolerance and unity.
“President Tinubu also met with the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, to discuss religious harmony in Nigeria.
“The meeting addressed the widespread disinformation campaigns that falsely portray the country as intolerant of religious diversity,” the release stated.
