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From Molly Kilete, Abuja
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The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has reassured Nigerians of the Nigerian Army’s commitment to defending national sovereignty, safeguarding lives and property, and securing vital national infrastructure, even as threats continue to evolve in shape and complexity.
He said that to end the insecurity bedevilling the country in the shortest possible time, the Nigerian Army has recalibrated its operational doctrine, force posture, and employment of capabilities through a comprehensive multi-domain strategy.
This approach, according to the COAS, integrates decisive kinetic action with intelligence fusion, inter-agency cooperation, joint operations with sister services, and sustained international partnerships.
He, however, pointed out that enduring peace can only be achieved when military operations are reinforced by effective governance, justice delivery, and inclusive socio-economic development.
Gen. Shaibu made this known in his lecture titled “Combating Asymmetric Threats to National Security in Nigeria: The Nigerian Army in Perspective,” which he delivered to participants of Course 34 of the National Defence College (NDC), Abuja.
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The COAS said that the contemporary global security environment has undergone a fundamental transformation, shifting from traditional state-centric warfare to complex intra-state conflicts dominated by non-state actors, including terrorists, insurgents, bandits, cybercriminals, and transnational organised crime networks that deliberately exploit governance gaps, societal vulnerabilities, and emerging technologies.
According to the COAS, “Asymmetric threats thrive on adaptability, anonymity, and the targeting of civilians to erode public confidence and state authority. Our response must therefore be equally adaptive, proactive, intelligence-led, and collaborative, leveraging military power alongside technology, whole-of-government coordination, and strategic partnerships.”
He explained that across Nigeria’s geopolitical zones, Nigerian Army operations have been deliberately tailored to prevailing threat dynamics. In the North-East, sustained counter-insurgency operations have continued to degrade terrorist capabilities through a combination of offensive manoeuvres, intelligence-driven strikes, and population-centric stabilisation efforts.
In the North-West theatre, Gen. Shaibu said wide-ranging joint operations have intensified pressure on bandit groups, disrupted their logistics and financing networks, and strengthened the protection of vulnerable communities. Meanwhile, in the North-Central region, enduring stabilisation operations have focused on area domination, protection of civilians, and the containment of communal and militia-related violence.
The COAS, while highlighting the growing impact of advanced technologies, enhanced training regimes, and deeper jointness with sister services in improving situational awareness, operational reach, and mission effectiveness, noted that contemporary national security transcends territorial defence to encompass economic security, cyber resilience, environmental stability, and human security.
While urging participants, whom he described as Nigeria’s future strategic and operational leaders, to embrace integrated, forward-looking security frameworks that address both the immediate manifestations and underlying drivers of conflict, the COAS reassured Nigerians of the Nigerian Army’s steadfast resolve to defend national sovereignty, protect lives and property, and secure critical national infrastructure, even as threats continue to evolve in form and complexity.
