US bill targets illegal Chinese mining operations in Nigeria for ‘funding Fulani militias’

Lawmakers in US congress

A fresh bill at the United States house of representatives has proposed that the country’s secretary of state works with the Nigerian government to thwart “hostile foreign exploitation of Chinese illegal mining operations”.

The proposed legislation, titled: ‘Nigeria Religious Freedom and Accountability Act of 2026’, was introduced by five Republican lawmakers on Tuesday.

The congressmen who sponsored the bill are Chris Smith, Riley Moore (bill author), Brian Mast, Mario Diaz-Balart, and Bill Huizenga.

The bill sponsors said illegal Chinese mining operations in Nigeria engage in the “destabilizing practice of paying protection money to Fulani militias”.

The bill also proposed that the US secretary of state should consider “technical support to the Government of Nigeria to reduce and then eliminate violence from armed Fulani militias”.

Clause 10 and 11 of the proposed legislation read as follows:

“The Secretary of State should consider technical support to the Government of Nigeria to reduce and then eliminate violence from armed Fulani militias, including disarmament programs and comprehensive counter-terrorism cooperation to rid the region of Foreign Terrorist Organizations that pose a direct threat to the American homeland;

“The Secretary of State should work with the Government of Nigeria to counteract the hostile foreign exploitation of Chinese illegal mining operations and their destabilizing practice of paying protection money to Fulani militias.”

The bill also stipulates that the US Department of State enlist international partners like France, Hungary, and the United Kingdom to work with the Nigerian government to promote religious freedom and peace.

The secretary of state is expected to determine whether certain “Fulani-ethnic militias” in Nigeria qualify as “Foreign Terrorist Organisation”.