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Nigeria and Russia have agreed to renegotiate their Bilateral Air Services Agreement (BASA), which dates back to 1967, to reflect contemporary developments and emerging opportunities in international aviation.
The agreement was reached during a high-level bilateral meeting between the two countries on the sidelines of the third Russia-Africa summit in Moscow, Russia.
Nigeria’s delegation was led by the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo.
Special Adviser to the Minister for Media and Communications, Tunde Moshood, in a statement on Friday said the proposed review will strengthen relations in the aviation sector and expand cooperation in the aviation sector.
According to the statement, the Nigerian delegation discussed with the Secretary of State and Deputy Minister of Transport of the Russian Federation, Dmitry Stanislavovich Zverev, the need to modernize the existing framework regulating air services between the two countries.
Both countries, he said, had agreed on a six-month timetable to conclude negotiations and sign a new agreement in St. Petersburg, Russia, in April 2027.
Moshood said that to facilitate the process, the two countries had established their respective negotiating teams, which were expected to begin work immediately to ensure that the agreed timeline was met.
He said the revised agreement should provide an updated framework for bilateral aviation relations, improve connectivity and create opportunities for closer institutional collaboration and mutually beneficial engagements between the aviation sectors of both countries.
He said that in addition to reviewing the existing air services agreement, the meeting also explored other potential areas of cooperation between Nigeria and Russia.
Moshood said both sides expressed their commitment to examining these opportunities in the coming months, with the goal of deepening bilateral relations and identifying areas of shared interest in aviation and related sectors.
