Nigeria and India have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding to strengthen ties in the areas of Counterterrorism, Maritime Security and Intelligence Sharing.

The information is contained in a joint statement issued on Sunday in Abuja, during the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to Nigeria at the invitation of President Bola Tinubu.

Modi’s host, Tinubu treated the Indian Prime Minister to a 21-artillery gun salute at the Presidential Villa before both leaders went into a closed-door meeting and later jointly presided over an expanded bilateral and political talks.

Their bilateral discussion centred greatly on collaboration in counterterrorism, maritime security, and intelligence sharing including healthcare delivery.

With growing threats in the Gulf of Guinea and the Indian Ocean, they sealed a deal on how to coordinate actions to safeguard maritime trade routes and combat piracy.

Both Modi and Tinubu pledged to continue regular naval exercises and joint anti-piracy operations in the Gulf of Guinea to safeguard critical maritime routes.

The leaders reiterated their unequivocal condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations including the cross-border movement of terrorists and terror financing networks and safe havens,” they concurred.