Femi Falana Urges Nigeria To Pressure US Over Iran-Israel Conflict
Senior Advocate of Nigeria and prominent human rights lawyer Femi Falana has called on the Nigerian government to join other nations in exerting diplomatic pressure on the United States amid the escalating Iran-Israel conflict.
Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Falana accused US President Donald Trump of showing blatant disregard for international law, highlighting the country’s withdrawal from about 66 United Nations resolutions.
“President Trump has no regard and shows contempt for international law. Hence, he has withdrawn the United States from about 66 United Nations resolutions. To him, the resolutions of the United Nations mean nothing,” he said.
Falana urged Nigeria to revive its tradition of multilateral diplomacy, drawing lessons from the country’s active role during the Non-Aligned Movement era. He emphasized the need for quick collaboration with other countries to check the actions of the Trump administration.
“Our duty as a country, as we used to do in the past, is to collaborate with other countries. When you talk of the days of non-alignment, we must now move very speedily to collaborate with other countries to mount pressure on Mr Trump,” he said.
He also stressed the importance of engaging China and Russia as intermediaries, citing their influence over Tehran. “We need to persuade China and Russia to intervene because those are the two countries that Iran will listen to,” Falana noted.
On domestic issues, Falana urged the Federal Government to strengthen Nigeria’s security agencies rather than depend on foreign powers, pointing to Iran’s self-reliance as a model. “Nigeria must wake up. We must learn from Iran that unless you reorganise your own country, unless you equip your armed forces and your police force, there is no way an imperialist country like America will guarantee law and order in your country,” he said.
Falana also criticized the country’s refining sector, highlighting the neglect of Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries despite $2.9 billion spent on their rehabilitation. “If we say we have four refineries, nobody is talking about them any longer. The NNPC now solely relies on the Dangote Refinery. Is that how to run a country?” he questioned.
