It has been confirmed that Cameroon has deployed about 1,000 of its troops, and dozens of armoured vehicles to its border with Nigeria, as a way of helping to stem activities of the Boko Haram Islamist sect around north-eastern Nigeria. According to spokesman of the Cameroonian Ministry of Defence, Lieutenant Colonel Didier Badjeck, the troops "will help to carry out reconnaissance, and be ready to respond with enough fire power."


They have also organised a few attacks in the region, most notably the kidnapping of 10 Chinese workers in the central African country in the middle of May. A soldier was also murdered in that attack.


Paul Biya, the Cameroonian President, was unwilling to get involved in Boko Haram’s battle with Nigeria, but he changed his stance during the recent regional security summit in Paris, which was attended by all of Nigeria’s neighbours that share the common border.