Russian military personnel enter Niger airbase where some U.S. troops remain

Russian military personnel entered an airbase in Niger where some U.S. troops are located, two U.S. officials confirmed to CBS News.

Russians have been in Niger for several weeks as the U.S. negotiates the withdrawal of its troops from two airbases in Niger, one of the officials said. Described by a second official as "trainers," said the Russians are located around two miles from where a small number of U.S. troops are based at Niamey's international airport. Most of the roughly 1,000 U.S. troops still in Niger are at a second airbase about 500 miles away from the capital, in the city of Agadez.

Before a coup in Niger in July 2023 led to the demand that American troops leave the country, the U.S. used the two bases to fly drones on counterterrorism missions in the Sahel region of Africa.