Abuja – President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Sunday praised the Nigerian military for its swift response to a request from the Government of the Republic of Benin to safeguard its 35‑year‑old democracy after a coup was launched at dawn. Acting on two separate requests from Benin, President Tinubu first ordered Nigerian Air Force fighter jets to enter Benin’s airspace and take control of the skies to help dislodge the coup plotters from the national television station and a military camp where they had regrouped.
The Benin Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a Note Verbale, asked for immediate Nigerian air support “in view of the urgency and seriousness of the situation and to safeguard the constitutional order, protect national institutions and ensure the security of the population.” A second request asked for the deployment of Nigerian Air Force assets within Benin’s airspace for surveillance and rapid‑intervention operations under Benin‑led coordination, and also sought Nigerian ground forces “strictly for missions approved by the Beninese Command authority in support of the protection of constitutional institutions and the containment of armed groups.”
Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Olufemi Oluyede, confirmed that all the requests had been fulfilled, with Nigerian ground forces now operating in Benin. “Ours is to comply with the order of the Commander‑in‑Chief of our armed forces, President Tinubu,” he said.
The constitutional order in Benin, a neighbour of Nigeria, was disrupted when soldiers led by Colonel Pascal Tigri announced a coup on Sunday morning, seized the national television station and declared that President Patrice Talon had been toppled and all democratic institutions suspended. Government loyal forces, assisted by Nigerian troops, later regained control of the TV station and flushed the coup plotters from the camp.
Following the restoration of democratic and constitutional order, President Tinubu addressed the nation, saying: “Today, the Nigerian armed forces stood gallantly as a defender and protector of constitutional order in the Republic of Benin on the invitation of the government. Our armed forces acted within the ambit of the ECOWAS Protocol on Democracy and Good Governance. They have helped stabilise a neighbouring country and have made us proud of their commitment to sustaining our democratic values and ideals since 1999. Nigeria stands firmly with the government and people of the Republic of Benin.”
The statement was issued by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President (Information and Strategy), on December 7, 2025.
