Tinubu Returns to Abuja After Aqaba Process Meeting in Rome
President Bola Tinubu has returned to Abuja after participating in the Aqaba Process Heads of State and Government-level Meeting held in Rome, Italy.
Presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, disclosed this in a statement issued in Abuja on Friday.
The Aqaba Process, a counter-terrorism initiative launched in 2015 by His Majesty King Abdullah II of Jordan, is co-chaired by the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and the Government of Italy.
The Rome edition of the meeting focused on strengthening regional and international collaboration in the fight against terrorism and violent extremism, with particular emphasis on West Africa.
The high-level session, held on Wednesday, October 15, at the National Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art in Rome, was attended by several Heads of State and Government, including King Abdullah II of Jordan, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and the Presidents of Nigeria, Chad, Paraguay, Sierra Leone, and Togo.
Others in attendance included Azouz Nasri, President of Algeria’s Upper House; delegations from Côte d’Ivoire, Kazakhstan, Mauritania, Senegal, and Uzbekistan; as well as special envoys and security experts.
The meeting was held behind closed doors.
On the sidelines of the summit, President Tinubu held bilateral meetings with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Massad Boulos, Senior Adviser on Arab and African Affairs to U.S. President Donald Trump.
The President also met with the Vatican’s Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, to discuss promoting religious harmony in Nigeria. The meeting addressed ongoing disinformation campaigns that falsely portray the country as intolerant of religious diversity.
Since its inception in 2015, the Aqaba Process has convened 33 meetings at various levels — from Heads of State summits to technical expert sessions — built around three core pillars: prevention, coordination, and closing operational gaps in counterterrorism efforts.
