US donates $21m of kit for Niger militant fight

They have already handed over dozens of armoured vehicles, radio systems, armoured containers

NIAMEY: The United States is donating $21 million (19 million euros) of military equipment to Niger to help fight militants in the Sahel region, an American diplomatic told AFP on Tuesday.

The Americans have already handed over dozens of armoured vehicles, radio systems and armoured containers, US ambassador Eric Whitaker said, adding that more would arrive by February 2020 -including a military transport plane.

Niger takes part in a five-nation anti-militant task force known as the G5, set up in 2014 with Burkina Faso, Mali, Mauritania and Chad.

Militants operate on Niger's northern borders with Mali and Libya and its southeastern border with Nigeria is plagued by from the Boko Haram group.

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Washington has increased its military presence in Niger since signing a military agreement in 2015 promising to "work together on the fight against terrorism".

The United States runs a massive base for drones in the northern city of Agadez, giving it a platform for surveillance in the Sahel.

In October 2017, four US soldiers and five Nigerien soldiers were killed in a militant ambush in Tongo Tongo, a village near the Mali frontier.