Trump warns Nigeria that US troops or airstrikes 'could be' used to defend Christians

Donald Trump has warned the US military "could be" deployed to Nigeria or carry out air strikes to stop what he called the killing of large numbers of Christians.

Posting on Truth Social last week, the US president claimed radical Islamists are committing "mass slaughter" and Christianity is "facing an existential threat" in the West African nation. On Sunday, Mr Trump was asked whether he envisioned troops on the ground or air strikes in Nigeria.

"Could be. I mean, other things.

I envisage a lot of things. They're killing record numbers of Christians in Nigeria...

"They're killing the Christians and killing them in very large numbers. We're not going to allow that to happen," he told reporters during a flight on Air Force One.

Nigeria has responded to threats of US military action by suggesting it would welcome help tackling Islamist insurgents, but insisted on Sunday that America must respect its sovereignty. "We welcome US assistance as long as it recognises our territorial integrity," Daniel Bwala, an adviser to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, told Reuters.

But Mr Bwala also sought to play down tensions between the two nations, despite Mr Trump calling Nigeria a "disgraced country". Over the weekend, Mr Tinubu also pushed back against the claims of religious intolerance and defended his country's efforts to protect religious freedom.

"The characterisation of Nigeria as religiously intolerant does not reflect our national reality, nor does it take into consideration the consistent and sincere efforts of the government to safeguard freedom of religion and beliefs for all Nigerians," Mr Tinubu said in a statement. Read more from Sky News:Another lethal strike by US in CaribbeanTrump feels 'badly' for royalsUS diplomat wants UK to drill more oil Nigeria has been placed on a US list of countries "of particular concern" due to violations of religious freedom.

The list also includes North Korea, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan and China. Boko Haram - which kidnapped more than 270 schoolgirls in 2014 - is the main group cited in previous warnings by US and international governments.

The group has committed "egregious violations of religious freedom.