Nigeria's neutral stance on the Russia-Ukraine conflict is due to the country's more than 60-year membership in the Non-Aligned Movement, which includes "strategic autonomy," Nigerian Foreign Minister Yusuf Tuggar told Al Jazeera.
"[The non-aligned stance] has been the policy of the state of Nigeria since its inception, since it was created in 1960. Nigeria was part of the non-aligned movement and has remained so and at the moment we’re currently practicing what is now referred to as strategic autonomy," the foreign minister noted.
He added that Nigeria gets along with all countries and is "not the only country that has that policy."
"Nigeria has always been an independent, sovereign nation. So we are not compelled to follow any other country’s lead," Tuggar said.
Nigeria's top diplomat is on a working visit to the Russian capital Moscow from March 5 to 7 for talks with his counterpart Sergey Lavrov to discuss detailed issues of the international and regional agenda.
Nigerian Stance on Gaza Conflict
The minister also commented on the conflict between Israel and Palestine, noting that there is no excuse for the out-of-control massacre in Gaza and that it must come to an end.
"There is no justification for the carnage that is going on in Gaza. It has to stop. There is no justification for the complete disregard for the proportionality of force that is being meted out on innocent civilians, on kids on children, on babies on women," he said.
Tuggar added that Nigeria supports the two-state solution, emphasizing Palestine's right to exist as a separate, independent state.
Russia, also, has repeatedly supported the two-state solution approved by the UN Security Council, which provides for the creation of an independent Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with its capital in East Jerusalem and called on both parties to stop the hostilities.