Nigeria, a nation remarkable for its domestic pluralism, has a foreign policy made in a highly contentious environment characterized by various normative prescriptions. There are often incongruities between the stated goals and the actual implementation of Nigerian foreign policy. Little consensus exists on the proper direction, either today or over the past 20 years, of that policy. Three issues are examined to illustrate the dilemmas which have confronted Nigerian policymakers in the past: the crisis in the Congo 1960-64, the Anglo-Nigerian Defense Pact, and the Nigerian policy toward the non-aligned movement. In its African policy, the Nigerian government has been a strong supporter of peace and stability, advocating non-interference in the internal affairs of the African nations-a policy which inspired strong domestic criticism. Major issues of controversy today include: human rights, Palestinians self-determination, and the extent and type of opposition to South Africa.
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