President Bola Tinubu officially approved the posting of four strategic ambassador-designates to lead Nigeria’s diplomatic missions in the United States, France, the United Kingdom, and Turkey. The announcement, released by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, marks the first major deployment from the list of 68 nominees confirmed by the Nigerian Senate in December 2025.
The President’s selection signals a robust shift in foreign policy, prioritizing seasoned intelligence veterans and experienced administrators for Nigeria’s most critical bilateral relationships. Colonel Lateef Are (rtd), a former Director-General of the State Security Service (SSS), has been deployed as the ambassador-designate to the United States. Similarly, Ayodele Oke, the former Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), will assume the role of ambassador-designate to France.
For the United Kingdom, President Tinubu has appointed Amin Dalhatu, a former ambassador to South Korea, as the High Commissioner-designate. Furthermore, Usman Isa Dakingari Suleiman, the former Executive Governor of Kebbi State, has been named the ambassador-designate to Turkey. This appointment is particularly time-sensitive, as President Tinubu is scheduled to commence a state visit to Turkey next week, necessitating immediate high-level diplomatic presence on the ground.
President Tinubu has directed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to formally notify the governments of the four respective nations, ensuring that all diplomatic protocols are expedited to facilitate the envoys’ resumption of duties.
The specific profiles of these appointees suggest that the Tinubu administration is aligning its diplomatic corps directly with Nigeria’s most pressing domestic priorities: national security and economic recovery.
The decision to post two former intelligence chiefs—Ayodele Oke and Lateef Are—to France and the United States respectively, indicates a “security-first” diplomacy. France and the US are Nigeria’s primary partners in the fight against insurgency in the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin. By embedding veterans of the NIA and SSS in Paris and Washington, the administration is likely aiming to bypass bureaucratic bottlenecks in intelligence sharing and accelerate the procurement of critical defense hardware. These envoys speak the language of the intelligence community, which could prove decisive in securing deeper counter-terrorism support.
On the economic front, the appointments of Amin Dalhatu and Usman Dakingari focus on trade expansion and infrastructure. Dalhatu’s previous diplomatic experience in South Korea—an industrial powerhouse—positions him well to navigate the United Kingdom’s post-Brexit financial markets, with a likely focus on attracting Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into Nigeria’s tech and energy sectors. Meanwhile, Turkey has become a key player in construction and defense manufacturing. Sending a former governor (Dakingari) to Ankara provides the political weight necessary to finalize high-value bilateral agreements, particularly during the President’s upcoming state visit.
