MILITARY RULE AND NIGERIAN FOREIGN POLICY

ABSTRACT

Since independence, with Jaja Wachuku as the first Minister of Foreign Affairs and Commonwealth Relations, later called External Affairs, Nigerian foreign policy has been characterised by a focus on Africa as a regional power and by attachment to several fundamental principles: African unity and independence; capability to exercise hegemonic influence in the region: peaceful settlement of disputes; non-alignment and non-intentional interference in the internal affairs of other nations; and regional economic cooperation and development. In carrying out these principles, Nigeria participates in the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the NonAligned Movement, the Commonwealth of Nations, and the United Nations. And to show its readiness in making Africa the centerpiece of her foreign policy, have assisted many African states in the settlement of their disputes in different ways which could be mention has been treated thus far: For instance, when civil war broke out in Angola after the country gained independence from Portugal in 1975, Nigeria mobilized its diplomatic influence in Africa in support of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA). That support helped tip the balance in their favour, which led to OAU recognition of the MPLA over the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola.