Foreign affairs

A lesson from Nigeria to Trump?

On Monday, the president of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, will become the first African leader to meet President Trump at the White House. Much of the meeting will probably focus on what the United States can do for Nigeria. The continent’s largest economy has a median age of only 18, a sluggish economy, and endemic corruption.

Yet Mr. Buhari could have something to offer the US as well.

Nigeria may be one of the few countries willing to negotiate with a branch of Islamic State (ISIS), part of its decade-long struggle with jihadi groups such as Boko Haram. Most other nations, including the US, refuse to talk to ISIS or its affiliates.

On Feb. 19, militants from Islamic State in West Africa Province (ISWAP) seized 112 schoolgirls and one boy from the town of Dapchi in northeast Nigeria. A month later, after negotiations with the government, the group accepted a temporary cease-fire and released most of the children. The government said it paid no ransom. It is possible that ISIS leaders in the Middle East ordered the release.