Nigerian Acting President Goodluck Jonathan Reassures Washington

Goodluck Jonathan, Acting President of Nigeria, came to Washington last week to participate in the international summit on nuclear security. Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua has been out of the public eye for months because of serious health issues, leaving Nigeria in a leadership crisis. Vice President Jonathan was named Acting President in February. Restoring confidence in the stability of Nigeria – the United States’ fifth largest supplier of oil – was a major goal of Jonathan’s visit to Washington, and he seems to have succeeded.

Acting President Jonathan made the rounds while in Washington. He met President Obama, visited Vice President Biden’s residence, and spoke at several high-profile forums around the city. In a speech at the Council on Foreign Relations, he addressed the problem of instability in the oil-rich Niger Delta region: “The issue of young men who have taken arms to fight the system ... it's not something you can say you can even complete in the four years of this administration. But I can assure you that we will set up a solid base and have a clear focus and a program with timelines that you will see that we are progressing.”

Jonathan also spoke at an event hosted by the Corporate Council on Africa. Nigerian newspaper The Guardian quoted Manchester Trade Vice President Tony Carroll, who said that Jonathan’s visit had “repaired the reputation of Nigeria.”