US Lobbying Firm Claims Mining Deal Was Linked To Tinubu

A United States-based lobbying and policy advisory firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, has claimed that the signing of the Nigeria-US mining Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was part of discussions surrounding a possible meeting between President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and US President Donald Trump.

The firm made the claim in a statement on its official X account, saying the mining agreement was intended to advance US access to critical metals and minerals while supporting the development of Nigeria’s mining industry.

According to the lobbying firm, the MoU was initially expected to be signed on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where President Tinubu was also expected to participate in high-level engagements.

The firm further claimed that the proposed agreement was among the proposals it believed the Nigerian government had offered in connection with a possible meeting between Tinubu and Trump.

It said it subsequently contacted the Trump administration over the proposed arrangement, after which, according to its account, the news report concerning the planned signing was removed, the signing at the UN was cancelled and Tinubu remained in France.

The firm claimed that Trump subsequently signed other agreements at the United Nations, adding that the United States secured access to Nigeria’s critical minerals while Tinubu did not secure the meeting with Trump.

However, the claims by the lobbying firm have not been independently established. Earlier reports had confirmed that Nigeria and the United States were planning a mining cooperation agreement at the UN General Assembly.

The agreement was eventually signed on September 23 by Nigeria’s Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, and US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau at the Nigerian Mission House in New York. The agreement covers areas including geological data and exploration, mineral development and processing, infrastructure and technical capacity building.