By Enyichukwu Enemanna
Nations in the West African region are ready to strike deals with the U.S. over energy and high-valued mineral resources, Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, said, but highlighted that the travel ban imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump may derail these efforts.
“We would like to do deals with the U.S., but visa restrictions are non-tariff barriers to deals,” Tuggar said in Abuja on Wednesday.
“We possess critical minerals and even rare earths,” Tuggar said at a conference of West African government ministers, citing the example of minerals such as samarium, which is used for military-grade magnets and nuclear reactor control rods found in Nigeria.
Trump this month implemented full or partial travel bans for foreign nationals from a dozen countries as part of his immigration crackdown.
A possible expansion of the restrictions to an additional 36 countries would include nearly all of West Africa.
“This would be most unfortunate if it comes to pass, because we are a region of opportunities ready to do deals,” said Tuggar, who is currently the chairman of regional bloc ECOWAS’s council of foreign ministers.
Since his return as U.S. leader in January, Trump has put longstanding trade relations in uncertainty with a number of tariff threats that have strained relations with trade partners.
Washington has also been accused of deploying aggressive tactics in a bid to secure better deals from trading partners.
As part of an agreement with Beijing, for example, Trump said China will supply the U.S. with magnets and rare earth minerals critical to the auto and battery industries in exchange for Chinese students’ continued access to U.S. universities.
“We are also a strategic alternative to more distant and politically divergent energy producers. So, we will do deals for our prosperity. The only question is with whom,” Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs said.
The U.S., in highlighting reasons for the bans, cited failure of governments to produce reliable identity documents, corruption, and high rates of visa overstays from several countries around the world.
