


































AQUINO VOLUME3 ISSUE 2 DECEMBER 2023


Abstract

Insurgency is spreading in every part of the world in different forms particularly in sub-
Sahara Africa and its impact has deteriorated the political landscape, thereby shaping 
the politics and government and by extension the foreign policy posture of the victim 
countries in a global scale. Thus, the growing incidence of insurgency in form of religious 
fundamentalism remains a serious and an on-going international threat. No region in the 
world has been spared and Africa is one of the hardest hit regions partly due to the other 
developmental issues that help to intensify the consequences of terrorism. The emergence 
of terrorism in Nigeria owing to the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in Northern Nigeria 
has greatly undermined the country's foreign policy drive and as such, their activities in 
Nigeria have called to question bases for Nigerian foreign policy relation particularly 
with the affected neighboring countries This research therefore aim to appraised 
critically the impact of the activities of Islamic/religious fundamentalism on Nigeria 
foreign policy Relation. It adopts political Economy approach as a theoretical framework 
to unearth the interrelationship between politics, fundamentalism, economy and Foreign 
Relation.  The research will use a qualitative method of data collection where both 
primary and secondary sources of data will be used to obtain qualitative data that can be 
interpreted within a given context of the study. A Research conclusion and 
recommendation will be provided for policy formulation and further academic research 
purposes.

Keywords: Foreign Policy-Fundamentalism-Terrorism-Religion          

Introduction
Insurgency has continued to spread unabatedly across the globe and its impact has gone 
beyond the location of the actual incident. Thus, the growing incidence of terrorism 
remains a serious and on-going threat to global peace. No region in the world has been 
spared and Africa is one of the hardest hit regions partly due to the other developmental 
issues that help to intensify the consequences of terrorism. (Adele B, 2013)

Security is among the core areas of focus in the internal and external development of 
states affairs. A closer look at the political history and external relations of Nigeria would 
only make one realize that Nigeria is passing through a phase that seems the most 
challenging for the country's foreign policy experts, observers and average Nigerians 
since the main focus of all architects of foreign policy is to distinctly marked off in clear 
terms country's national interest which serves as a guide in their relations with other 
nations. The efficient administration of foreign policy objectives is therefore based on 

AN APPRAISAL OF THE IMPACT OF INSURGENCY ON THE CHANGING 
PATTERN OF NIGERIA FOREIGN POLICY

Suleiman Mohammed Evuti.
smevuti@ibbu.edu.ng

Department of History and International studies,
Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida University Lapai.

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credible and widely accepted principles that help shape a country's image in the 
international system. (Marc A., Verjee N., & Mogaka S., 2015)
The emergence of terrorism in Nigeria owing to the rise of radicalization of some Islamic 
fundamentals in Northern Nigeria has greatly undermined the country's foreign policy 
drive and as such the activities of this group in Nigeria have led to negative reactions from 
groups and nations that have been affected by its activities in the country, thereby leading 
to determination of foreign relations of these countries with Nigeria. The manifold attacks 
and activities of this group have made the Nigerian state to be ungracefully popular 
among the comity of nations. Boko Haram is a home grown terrorist group in Nigeria that 
has become a threat that everyone dreads and fears because of the dimensions its activities 
have taken from just an ordinary religious sect to notorious terrorist group. (James J. and 
Olusola E., 2014)

Shola (2015), opines that Boko Haram is a reflection of the Nigerian society. It pictures 
the paradox of a country so wealthy yet so poor, and so endowed yet so deprived. Its 
citizens wallow in abject poverty. This state of affairs manures the prosperity of the sect. 
The youth who are now instruments of manipulations in the hands of the leaders of the 
sect are among the teeming unemployed and deprived ones the Nigerian state has 
abandoned. Boko Haram's activities have included recurrent attacks, killing of persons 
and wanton destruction of property, population displacements and other forms of 
aggression. The activities of this terrorist group in recent time have had excessive 
influence in creating instability and insecurity in the country and has contributed to the 
diminution of the country's image among the country of nations. Also, economic 
development most especially in the North-East is nothing to write home about while 
Nigeria's foreign policy is being determined by this internal crisis. 

Subsequently, the nefarious activities of the insurgency and other groups have generated 
so much interests from the international community thereby raising questions as to the 
potentiality of government strategy to deal with the threat constituted by the terrorist 
group. This is because the audacity of the group has continued at intense rate amidst 
government claims of winning the war, everyday casualty's increase at alarming rates 
after each attack, making the general public to lose confidence in the system. As a result, 
the activities of the insurgency group have extended beyond the Nigerian territories to her 
immediate neighbors (Shola O. J. 2015).
 
Insurgency 
Insurgency, term historically refers to rebellious acts that did not reach the proportions of 
an organized revolution. It has subsequently been applied to any such armed uprising, 
typically guerrilla in character, against the recognized government of a state or country.
In traditional international law, insurgency was not recognized as belligerency, and 
insurgents lacked the protection customarily extended to belligerents. Herbert W. Briggs 
in The Law of Nations (1952) described the traditional point of view as follows:
The existence of civil war or insurrection is a fact. Traditionally, the fact of armed 
rebellion has not been regarded as involving rights and obligations under international 
law. Recognition of the belligerency of the insurgents by the parent State or of the 
contestants by foreign States changes the legal situation under international law. Prior to 

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such recognition, foreign States have a legal right to aid the parent State put down a revolt, 
but are under a legal obligation not to aid insurgents against the established government. 
(Herbert W. Briggs, 1952)

The status of the faction opposing a government was usually determined by what Charles 
Cheney Hyde described as “the nature and extent of the insurrectionary achievement.” If 
the government was able to suppress the hostile faction rapidly, the event was described as 
a “rebellion.” In such cases recognition of the insurgents by a third party was regarded as 
“premature recognition,” a form of illegal intervention. If the insurgents became a serious 
challenge to the government and achieved formal recognition as “belligerents,” then the 
struggle between the two factions became in international law the equivalent of war. 
Support given to the insurgents by a third party amounted to that foreign government's 
participation in the war. (Charles Cheney Hyde 1994)

After World War II the emergence of a number of Communist states and of new nations in 
Asia and Africa changed the established international legal doctrine on insurgency. 
Communist states claimed the right to support insurgents engaged in “just wars of 
national liberation.” The new nations resulting from decolonization in Asia and Africa 
after World War II supported in most cases insurgents who invoked the principle of 
“national self-determination.” The United States and other Western countries in turn 
rejected such intervention as “indirect aggression” or “subversion.” International legal 
consensus regarding insurgency thus broke down as the result of regional and ideological 
pressures (Gurr TR, 1994).

Causes of Insurgency
Poverty, political, social, and economic inequalities between groups predispose to 
conflict; policies to tackle them will reduce this risk. Eight out of 10 of the world's poorest 
countries are suffering, or have recently suffered, from large scale violent conflict. Wars 
in developing countries have heavy human, economic, and social costs and are a major 
cause of poverty and underdevelopment. The extra infant deaths caused by the war in 
Cambodia, for example, were estimated to be 3% of the country's 1990 population. Most 
current conflicts, such as in the Sudan or the Congo, are within states, although there is 
often considerable outside intervention, as in Afghanistan. In the past 30 years Africa has 
been especially badly affected by war. Major root causes include political, economic, and 
social inequalities; extreme poverty; economic stagnation; poor government services; 
high unemployment; environmental degradation; and individual (economic) incentives 
to fight.
In wars, political leaders may deliberately “rework historical memories” to engender or 
strengthen this identity in the competition for power and resources. For example, in the 
conflict in Matebe land in post-independence Zimbabwe, Ndebele identity was used to 
advance political objectives. Other well-known examples include the Nazis in Germany, 
the Hutus in Rwanda and, today, the emphasis on Muslim consciousness by the Taliban 
and others (Alexander J, Ranger T, 2000).

Economic Factors Which Predispose to War
Four economic hypotheses have been put forward to explain intra-state wars, based on 

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factors related to group motivation, private motivation, failure of the social contract, and 
environmental degradation.

Failure of the Social Contract: This derives from the view that social stability is based 
on a hypothetical social contract between the people and the government. People accept 
state authority so long as the state delivers services and provides reasonable economic 
conditions (employment and incomes). With economic stagnation or decline, and 
worsening state services, the social contract breaks down, and violence results. Hence 
high and rising levels of poverty and a decline in state services would be expected to cause 
conflict. (Stewart F., 2001)

Group Inequality: There is consistent evidence of sharp horizontal inequalities between 
groups in conflict. Group inequalities in political access are invariably observed—hence 
the resort to violence rather than seeking to resolve differences through political 
negotiation. Group inequalities in economic dimensions are common, although not 
invariably large (such as in Bosnia18). Horizontal inequalities are most likely to lead to 
conflict where they are substantial, consistent, and increasing over time. Although 
systematic cross country evidence is rare, one study classified 233 politicized communal 
groups in 93 countries according to political, economic, and ecological differences and 
found that most groups suffering horizontal inequalities had taken some action to assert 
group interests, ranging from non-violent protest to rebellion.

Foreign Policy
Foreign policy, general objectives that guide the activities and relationships of one state in 
its interactions with other states. The development of foreign policy is influenced by 
domestic considerations, the policies or behavior of other states, or plans to advance 
specific geopolitical designs. Leopold von Ranke emphasized the primacy of geography 
and external threats in shaping foreign policy, but later writers emphasized domestic 
factors. Diplomacy is the tool of foreign policy, and war, alliances, and international trade 
may all be manifestations of it. (Von Ranke, 1975)

Factors that Influence Foreign Policy
In the modern world, no single state can survive on its own. Each state is bound by 
interdependence. This is why every state has to dream of good relations with other states. 
As a member of the international society, the relations of the states are determined and 
controlled by foreign policy. Several things also determine foreign policy and those 
things are called determinants of foreign policy.

Determinants of Foreign Policy
1. Geographical Location
There are two aspects of the influence of geography on foreign policy; the geographical 
environment of the state and the political importance of its geographical location. The 
state's geographical environment refers to its size, area, and climate.
The ideal geographical environments of the state are:
The size of the state will be such that it will help the residents to maintain a decent living 
standard.

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The climate needs to be favorable to hard labor.
Terrain needs to be supportive of national resistance. Mountains, Rivers, sea-borne 
countries enjoy the advantage of being free from foreign invasions for natural reasons.
The shape of the state needs to be such that one can easily fast during the war period.
In nature, it is not possible to achieve the favorable geographical environment of a 
country. The geographical location of each country is particularly influenced by its 
foreign policy. Its insular position in Great Britain helps spread connectivity with other 
countries. Again the United States has succeeded in pursuing a policy of separation from 
Europe for its geographical location.

2. Population
The population is considered one of the important determinants of foreign policy. For a 
long time, the population has been regarded as an important criterion for measuring state 
power. In the past war, the massive infantry of the People's Republic of China helped to 
resist the US forces.
The relation between population and foreign policy gains importance in terms of the 
capability of a state. The importance of the population to determine the policies of 
solidarity among all parts of the citizens, the development of political organizations, the 
quality of the public, the promotion of political consciousness, the spread of the political 
participation, the pressure of public opinion, the type of government etc.
However, its quality is particularly important with respect to population size. Citizens' 
skills, abilities, and quality money help to spread national influence.

3. History
Each nation's history is influenced by its foreign policy. The outline of the history of each 
nation is formed through the special circumstances of the chips and events. It is possible to 
identify its identity.
The geographical boundaries of each nation are determined through the constraints of 
historical events. Through the history of the development of a nation, many basic features 
of foreign policy are developed. In light of historical experience, each nation forms the 
basis of its foreign policy.

4. Economic Resources
The nature and style of foreign policy is largely determined by economic resources. The 
economic strength of a state is an indicator of its affordability. The effect of that ability is 
reflected in relations with other states.
The main objective of the economic structure is to utilize the country's land, labor, capital 
and enterprises for production. Distribution of economic wealth produced, consumption, 
public welfare, improvement of living standard of the citizens etc. are also included in the 
economic activities of the state.
A country rich in natural resources can easily achieve its economic prosperity. For 
example, mineral oil has become one of the most important political hubs of Middle East 
international politics.
Natural resources and industrial development are the basis of the international status of a 
country. In the present world, each country's resistance depends on the rate of 
industrialization and natural resources.

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5. Ideology
Each state-system is governed by specific political ideologies. The values, policies, 
programs, objectives, and goals of a state are governed by that ideology. Ideology does 
not simply determine the internal policies and values of a state; is governed by foreign 
policy and those ideologies. So it can be considered one of the most important 
determinants of foreign policy.
For example, socialist states are convinced of the principles of international peace, 
friendship, mutual cooperation, refusal to interfere in the internal affairs of other states, 
etc.
In the end, capitalism maintains its existence through exploitation and oppression of 
home and abroad. It is for this reason that capitalist countries follow aggressive policies in 
economic, political, and cultural fields.

6. Efficiency of Government and Nature of Political Leadership
Government leaders are the main source and strength of foreign policy. The role of the 
state at any given time and the type of foreign policy to be followed depends on the quality 
of the decision makers.
On the basis of practical experience, it can be said that foreign policy cannot be separated 
from the nature of government leadership under any circumstances.
Foreign policy decisions are bound to be influenced by the leadership of the government, 
including psychological structure, political experience and foresight, personality, 
realization of world-politics. For this reason, it is possible to notice differences in political 
issues between leaders of the same political party.

7. Quality of Diplomacy
Quality of diplomacy one of the most important determinants of foreign policy. The 
success or failure of a state in international Politics depends on its diplomatic tactics and 
excellence. Each of the goals and objectives of the state is determined by the diplomatic 
ingenuity of the government.
All the goals of foreign policy are determined by the people involved in diplomatic 
activity. It is through diplomatic activity that the main linkages and differences with other 
states are resolved. Diplomats determine the mechanism for combining different 
interests.

Conflict Theory
Conflict theory, first developed by Karl Marx, is a theory that society is in a state of 
perpetual conflict because of competition for limited resources.
Conflict theory holds that social order is maintained by domination and power, rather than 
by consensus and conformity. According to conflict theory, those with wealth and power 
try to hold on to it by any means possible, chiefly by suppressing the poor and powerless. 
A basic premise of conflict theory is that individuals and groups within society will work 
to try to maximize their own wealth and power.
Conflict theory focuses on the competition among groups within society over limited 
resources.

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Conflict theory views social and economic institutions as tools of the struggle among 
groups or classes, used to maintain inequality and the dominance of the ruling class.
Marxist conflict theory sees society as divided along lines of economic class between the 
proletarian working class and the bourgeois ruling class. (Marx and Engels, 1885)
Later versions of conflict theory look at other dimensions of conflict among capitalist 
factions and among various social, religious, and other types of groups.

Conflict theory has sought to explain a wide range of social phenomena, including wars, 
revolutions, poverty, discrimination, and domestic violence. It ascribes most of the 
fundamental developments in human history, such as democracy and civil rights, to 
capitalistic attempts to control the masses (as opposed to a desire for social order). Central 
tenets of conflict theory are the concepts of social inequality, the division of resources, 
and the conflicts that exist among different socioeconomic classes.

The central tenets of conflict theory can explain many types of societal conflicts 
throughout history. Some theorists believe, as Marx did, that societal conflict is the force 
that ultimately drives change and development in society.

Marx's version of conflict theory focused on the conflict between two primary classes. 
Each class consists of a group of people bound by mutual interests and a certain degree of 
property ownership. Marx theorized about the bourgeoisie, a group that represented 
members of society who hold the majority of the wealth and means. The proletariat is the 
other group: It includes those considered working-class or poor.

With the rise of capitalism, Marx theorized that the bourgeoisie, a minority within the 
population, would use their influence to oppress the proletariat, the majority class. This 
way of thinking is tied to a common image associated with conflict theory-based models 
of society; adherents to this philosophy tend to believe in a pyramid arrangement in terms 
of how goods and services are distributed in society. At the top of the pyramid is a small 
group of elites that dictate terms and conditions to the larger portion of society because 
they have an outsized amount of control over resources and power. (Marx and Engels, 
1885)

Uneven distribution within society was predicted to be maintained through ideological 
coercion; the bourgeoisie would force acceptance of the current conditions by the 
proletariat. Conflict theory assumes that the elite will set up systems of laws, traditions, 
and other societal structures in order to further support their own dominance while 
preventing others from joining their ranks.

Marx theorized that, as the working class and poor were subjected to worsening 
conditions, a collective consciousness would raise more awareness about inequality, and 
this would potentially result in revolt. If, after the revolt, conditions were adjusted to favor 
the concerns of the proletariat, the conflict circle would eventually repeat but in the 
opposite direction. The bourgeoisie would eventually become the aggressor and revolter, 
grasping for the return of the structures that formerly maintained their dominance.

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The Imact of Insurgency on Nigeria's Foreign Policy
Based on the prevailing cordial diplomatic relations between the two states, Nigeria and 
U. S of America; decided to purchase lethal weapons from the US, the decision to buy 
weapons became urgent, given several reports blaming the government for inadequate 
weapons for the Nigerian soldiers in the war fronts, (Udo, B. (2014)  certainly, inadequate 
sophisticated arms and government ineptitude among other factors were critical to the 
failed military counterterrorist operation, In his statement to the military tribunal, a 
soldier, whose unit could not dislodge the terrorist from their hideout in the Borno state's 
section of the dreaded Sambisa forest, provides insight into the decadence within the 
Nigerian Armed forces. 

The dismissed soldier stated that the troops were only armed with five bullets each and 
expired bombs made in 1964, whereas the Boko Haram enemies were armed with 
sophisticated arms such as anti-aircraft with a range of over 1,000 meters, (Vanguard, 
2015) convinced therefore that acquisition of more offensive arms was pivotal to 
defeating the sect; the Nigerian government opted to buy weapons from the US. 
Specifically, Nigeria wanted to buy Cobra Attack Helicopters and other sophisticated 
military hardware, McGregor, A. (2015)  even though US had pledged its readiness to 
help Nigeria decimate the sect and had since 2013 declared the group a Foreign Terrorist 
Organisation (FTO), it nonetheless refused Nigeria's request for weapons, citing human 
rights record of the Nigerian soldiers fighting the terrorists, Obaji, P. (2015)  It only 
supplied defensive weapons such as landmine-resistant vehicles to the Nigerian military, 
but declined to supply offensive weapons to the country. Of a truth, the military operation 
against Boko Haram under the umbrella of the Joint Task Force had grave consequences 
for the human rights of the people in the region, the security outfit has been variously 
accused of extra-judicial and summary executions of the suspected terrorists, detention of 
innocent citizens for years without trial, arbitrary arrest of individuals suspected of being 
members of the outlawed sect, intimidation and harassment of the residents of the place 
(Amnesty International, 2014; Amnesty International, 2015),  Washington hinged its 
refusal to sell the weapons based on the implementation of the Leahy Law against 
Nigeria, the Law was specially enacted within the US external relations to deny the US 
military assistance to foreign military units involved in the violations of human right. 
(Foreign affairs, 2017)

Commenting on the outrageous human rights profile of the Nigerian fighting force, 
Nigeria and the Great Powers: maintains that human rights abuses of the military 
especially its summary and extra-judicial executions played a major role in the 
radicalization of many members of the sect who were known to be pacifists. Accordingly, 
the Leahy Law states that: 'No assistance shall be furnished under this Act… to any unit of 
the security forces of a foreign country if the Secretary of State has credible information 
that such unit has committed a gross violation of human rights' (Legal Information 
Institute, ND), over the years, Leahy Law has been implemented to block military 
assistance to some countries whose military units involved in the abuses of human rights 
of the civilians. Such countries include Turkey, Columbia, Bolivia, and Mexico, also, the 
Pakistani military has equally come under the hammer of the Law for its extra-judicial 
killings and other forms of gross human rights abuses. While justifying the US's refusal to 

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sell deadly arms to Nigeria, American ambassador to Nigeria, Ambassador James 
Entwistle stated that Washington would not sell arms to Nigeria because 'the US 
government is against human rights abuses by any country in the world'. 

He maintains that the 'Nigerian military had been massively involved in human rights 
violations in its war against the terrorists, Guardian, (2014) Israel and Brazil also declined 
to supply offensive weapons to Nigeria due to the US's pressure. Elaborating on the 'No 
Objection' request from these two countries to sell arms to Nigeria, Entwistle declares 
that: The US Department of State and Defense review all potential arms transfers for their 
consistency with US policy and interests, as detailed in the US Conventional Arms 
Transfer policy, this includes any requests from a country that we have sold or donated 
weapons to resell or donate those same weapons to another country, such as Nigeria. We 
examine whether an arms transfer makes sense for the needs of the prospective country, 
Part of our review considers whether equipment may be used in a way that could 
adversely affect human rights. The United States believes that we bear a certain 
responsibility for how equipment is ultimately used. We take this responsibility very 
seriously, and our laws require strict accountability for all sales, Entwistle, F. J. (2014) 
expectedly, the US's global arms embargo imposed on Nigeria was largely interpreted by 
Nigerians as a betrayal by a friend that failed to help Nigeria in its moment of crisis, 
Siollum, M. (2018) the President Barak Obama's Nigerian policy during the 
administration of the President Goodluck Jonathan especially the regime's refusal to 
supply the Nigerian air force with Cobra attack aircraft, all helped to wreak serious 
damage to the US-Nigerian relations, the diplomatic furor generated by the US's action 
made Jonathan's government to sever Nigeria's security partnership with Washington 
(Tukur, 2014) to protest the US's 'betrayal'. 

President Muhammadu Buhari, who succeeded Jonathan, heaped the blame of lingering 
Boko Haram crisis on the US decision, pointing out that the arms denial amounts to 
'aiding and abetting Boko Haram terrorists in the country' BBC, (2015) In its desperation, 
Nigeria was forced to turn to the South African black market to procure weapons, 
however, the weapons sales were blocked by the South African government who 
described the botched deal as illegal, Ibekwe, N. (2014)  reprieve only came the way of 
Nigeria when Russia was approached for the much-needed arms. Moscow's prompt 
response  Campbell, J. (2014) in the delivery of the weapons to Nigeria severely shattered 
the aura of invincibility with which Boko Haram had been carrying out its attacks, the 
deployment of the Russian weapons as well as the regional military alliance; the 
Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) degraded the terrorists and dislodged them from 
their Gworza caliphate and other dreaded camps in the northeast, the weakening of the 
sect prompted President Buhari to publicly proclaim that the Boko Haram terrorist group 
has been technically defeated, Onapajo, H (2017) the implications of  Boko Haram on 
Nigeria's Foreign policy are enormous especially as it manifested in the diminishing 
image of Nigeria in the comity of nations. 

The US's visa ban imposed on individuals alleged to have compromised the integrity of 
the 2019 General elections in Nigeria (Leadership 2019) has further complicated efforts 
at normalizing the ruptured diplomatic relations. President Buhari, who was declared the 

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winner of the 'rigged' poll, has not reacted formerly to the visa ban. While the US declined 
to reveal the identity of the affected persons, it is believed that the list contains the names 
of the President's 'big boys' and members of the ruling All Progressive Party (APC)

The policy to stonewall arms delivery to Nigeria underscores the growing irrelevance of 
Nigeria in the US's geo-economic and strategic calculations. The upsurge in Shale oil 
production, making the US the largest oil-producing states in the world (Global Terrorism 
Index, 2014) means that Nigeria is no longer crucial in the American energy sector. 
Ditching Abuja's efforts to get arms, therefore, brings no consequence to Washington. 
Although President Buhari has declared that Nigeria had paid for the delivery of lethal 
arms form the US, however, as of writing, the weapons are still being awaited in the 
country.

Barrack Hussein Obama's first visit to the Sub Saharan Africa, in which he chooses 
Ghana, in place of Nigeria and in his all exciting speech to a large crowd of Ghanaian in 
Accra, including top government functionaries of the host country and Nigeria. The 
erudite president simply advised all the states in the sub-Saharan Africa to learn from 
Ghana, that is Nigeria inclusive, the choice of President Obama's visit to Ghana instead of 
Nigeria was considered as a major diplomatic failure for the Nigerian state, particularly 
judging by its size, resource endowments and its laudable leadership roles, over time, on 
the continent of Africa (Siobhan, O. 2015).

Boko Haram's trans-border terrorism in the Chad basin region set this Jihadi group in 
opposition to Nigeria, Cameroon, Niger, Chad and by extension, France, the incursion of 
Boko Haram into the French speaking countries constitutes an unacceptable threat to 
French interests in West and Central Africa. This is more so given the several attacks by 
Boko Haram against France's interests in the region. The Boko Haram attack in Waza 
Park, in northern Cameroon where the terrorists abducted seven French tourists on 
February 19, 2013, was one of the classic examples of the sect's direct threat to France's 
core national interest. Commenting about the abduction, former French foreign affairs 
Minister noted that: 'it (abduction) shows that the fight against terrorist groups is a 
necessity…', therefore, both France's and Nigeria's interests converge on the Boko Haram 
crisis. France's active participation in the counter-terrorist effort 'was informed by the fear 
that the escalation of terrorism in Nigeria poses a threat to French geostrategic interests in 
its former colonies', the burden of fighting the group's terrorism ultimately falls on all the 
regional countries in the Basin, including France, this is more so given the French policy 
of dealing with the threat posed by many Islamic terrorist gangs that seek to further 
destabilize the already structurally weak states in the unstable region. France's regional 
agenda is succinctly captured by the assertion of the country's ex-law makers; Andre 
Dulait, saying, 'the African continent is our neighbors and when it is shaken by conflicts, 
we are shaken as the crisis triggered by Boko Haram had shaken the African continent 
particularly when it was rated the deadliest terrorist group in 2014 (GTI, 2014)

The regionalization of the Boko Haram violence has ensured that France works closely 
with its African partners through the provision of right arms and specialized training on 
effective counterterrorism. More importantly, Boko Haram's allegiance to ISIS in 2014 

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and the subsequent change of name to Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) 
suggests that the group can only be tamed by superior firepower similar to what was 
unleashed on ISIS in the Middle East, commenting on the allegiance, Francois Hollande, 
French President maintains that the pledge of allegiance by the Nigerian terror 
organization to Islamic State group poses a major threat to West Africa security and must 
be taken at face value, He further emphasizes that: “We know Boko Haram is linked to 
Daesh (ISIS) and so receives help (and) support from this group, the fight against Boko 
Haram is the fight against Daesh…. Boko Haram is largely seen as IS' Caliphate in West 
Africa province” (Siobhan, O. 2015)  the crisis in the North East region, has continued to 
attract negative attention globally, especially by international right groups and 
humanitarian bodies like Amnesty International (Al), Human Rights Watch (HURIWA), 
who have all written at various times damaging reports on the activities of the Nigerian 
state, especially as it concerns the North East region this barrage of criticism to a very 
large extent has the potentials of reducing Nigeria to a pariah state among the comity of 
nations.

The kidnap of 300 Chibok school girls to Sambisa forest, opened a new vista in the 
activities of Boko Haram and its implication on Nigeria's external image, as the kidnap 
draw the attention of the whole world and this led to the famous global campaign of “ # 
Bring Back our Girls”, the kidnap of the school girls and the crisis within the Armed 
forces that led to the dismissal of some officers from the frontline exposed the weaknesses 
of the counter terrorist measures of the Nigerian government before the world, the above 
made analysts, the world over, to begin to see Nigeria as a 'failed state, a state which lacks 
the potential of providing security of live and prosperity as well as inability to meet its 
constitutional mandate of providing basic amenities of life to its citizens. 

Furthermore, Nigeria's status in Africa and international organizations continued to be 
menaced. The activities of the rebellious sect have negative implications on the big 
brother's role Nigeria play to other African nations; preaching, upholding and advocating 
for peace, equity, justice and ethnic terrorism have sent a wrong signal. Therefore, her 
status as the 'giant' of Africa is at stake. This situation, (Bariledum, K. 2013), observes 
made some countries in Africa to contest the leadership position with the country. For 
every available position in which Nigeria has an interest on, there are wontly some other 
countries which compete with her and in some instance overcoming the nation due to the 
image problem. The activities of Boko Haram have contrary affected the inflow of foreign 
investment into Nigeria's solid mineral sector in the northern part of Nigeria as oil serving 
companies, Julius Berger construction giant, among others have pulled out their 
operations from the region and prefer other African neighboring countries as a result of 
the insecurity situation.

Conclusion 
Nonetheless, scholars, politicians and human rights organizations point out that not only 
Boko Haram is to blame for the escalation of violence in Nigeria, the government 
gradually intensified its repressive response, especially under the administration of the 
newly elected president Muhammadu Buhari ,amnesty International estimates that some 
7,000 people have died of starvation, suffocation or torture while being held in military 

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detention since March 2011 and at least 1,200 men and boys are thought to have been 
executed by the military since February 2012 (Amnesty International, 2015c), Largely, 
three main reasons for the outbreak of violence in 2009 are put forward: religious 
radicalization and the quest for a Sharia state, the socio-economic state of the country in 
general and the relative deprivation of the Northern region in specific, and failed 
governance and weak institutions. Furthermore, some studies have criticized that 
escalatory counter-terrorism approaches have taken preference to dialogue and 
conciliatory measures an in-depth analysis on Boko Haram insurgency and Nigeria's 
foreign policy, it submits that issues of terrorism in Nigeria have been caused by 
governance failure which is indexed by the inability of government to provide the basic 
needs of its citizens which include job creation, health  care services, education, 
maintenance of the rule of law and non the least security. 

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