Niger, Russia To Sign Contract On Helicopter Purchases In October - Foreign Minister

Niger is in an urgent need of helicopters to fight terrorist insurgency in eastern and northern regions and intends sign a contract with Russia on purchasing choppers in October, Nigerien Foreign Minister Kallo Ankourao told Sputnik

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd September, 2019) Niger is in an urgent need of helicopters to fight terrorist insurgency in eastern and northern regions and intends sign a contract with Russia on purchasing choppers in October, Nigerien Foreign Minister Kallo Ankourao told Sputnik.

"In October we will sign a new contract to purchase Russian helicopters.

We are not talking about buying fifty of them, but for those who have no helicopters at all, to have several to be able to withstand at the eastern front and Boko Haram, the northern front and Libya, and the western front and Mali - it is very important to us," Ankourao said.

According to the minister, more than a hundred Nigerien cadets are currently completing education in Russian military academies and are likely to prefer working with the Russian equipment when enter service back home. �