President Bola Tinubu Meets Foreign Envoys; Receives Goodwill Letters

President Bola Tinubu, met diplomats of several countries, who gave him goodwill letters, at the Presidential Villa on Monday after taking oath as the 16th President of Nigeria at Eagle Square.

Shortly after taking the oath, the president vowed to maintain diplomatic relationships with foreign countries. He went on to meet all the envoys from the United Kingdom, United States, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Brazil, South Korea, Israel, Cape Verde, Somalia and Nicaragua.

President Tinubu was presented with letters following the inauguration. The new UK High Commissioner to Nigeria, Richard Montgomery, gave letters from British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, King Charles and Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby while congratulating President Tinubu at the ceremony.

The US delegation led by Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Marcia L. Fudge had a brief discussion with the president after taking the oath, followed by a discussion with the South Korean delegation.

The South Korean delegation invited Tinubu to South Korea by giving him South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol's letter of invitation. Whereas, the Saudi Arabian delegation presented a letter of goodwill from the Saudi Royal House.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's special envoy also delivered a letter and discussed briefly extending their support and maintaining the relationship between Nigeria and Japan.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's delegation expressed their country's willingness to be a part of Nigeria's fin-tech. Other countries' delegations including Brazil, Somalia, Cape Verde, and Nicaragua also pledged their support to Nigeria.

President Tinubu also stressed on maintaining economic collaboration with other countries during his speech, after taking the oath.

"Our constitution and laws give us a nation on paper," he said, Punch reported. "We must work harder at bringing these noble documents to life by strengthening the bonds of economic collaboration, social cohesion, and cultural understanding."

Regarding foreign policy, he shared that the "objective must be the peace and stability of the West African sub-region and the African continent," adding that Nigeria "shall work with ECOWAS, the AU and willing partners in the international community to end extant conflicts and resolve new ones."

"As we contain threats to peace, we shall also retool our foreign policy to more actively lead the regional and continental quest for collective prosperity," he said.

He also addressed the citizens of the country, noting that South and North - both should seek good for each other, rather than just serving their own interests. He promised to serve and treat everyone equally in the country.

On Monday, Nigeria and the world witnessed a smooth transition of power between outgoing president Muhammadu Buhari and incoming president Tinubu. Buhari served the country as president from 2015 to 2023.