US Lobbying Firm Questions Authenticity Of Trump’s Letter To Tinubu, Demands Original Copy
A Washington-based lobbying firm, Von Batten-Montague-York, has cast doubt on the authenticity of a purported letter from United States President Donald Trump to President Bola Tinubu, calling on the Nigerian Presidency to publish the original signed document instead of the typed transcript circulating on social media.
The firm, which represents former Vice President Atiku Abubakar in the United States, raised the concerns in a statement posted on its official X account on Wednesday after comparing what it described as an authentic letter sent by Trump to Argentine President Javier Milei with the version released by an account linked to President Tinubu.
According to the lobbying firm, the differences between the two documents were substantial enough to warrant public scrutiny.
"A Tale of Two Letters: On the left, we have an actual copy of President @realDonaldTrump's letter to Argentine President @JMilei. On the right, we have what an account linked to President Tinubu, using the Facebook handle @PBATMediaCentre, has posted as President Trump's letter to President Tinubu. The difference is beyond clear," the firm stated.
While clarifying that it was not asserting that no diplomatic correspondence existed between Trump and Tinubu, the firm questioned why the Presidency had published only the text of the purported letter rather than a scanned image of the signed original.
"We are not saying that a standard diplomatic response letter was never sent to President Tinubu. Nor are we saying that President Tinubu fabricated the purported letter. After all, Tinubu's staff could easily create a fake letter tomorrow and post it as a rebuttal," it said.
It added, "What we are saying is that it is unusual for a letter to be quoted in full, including the date and signature block, rather than simply publishing an image of the actual letter itself. Until the actual letter is released, whether real or fake, Nigerians must understand that Tinubu is trying to fool you."
The lobbying firm also tagged several international media organisations and institutions, including The Washington Post, CNN Africa, BBC Africa, Reuters, AFP, Foreign Policy, Nigeria's National Assembly and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), apparently urging wider scrutiny of the issue.
The controversy followed the circulation of a letter attributed to President Trump and shared by the Tinubu Presidency on Wednesday.
In the purported correspondence, Trump reportedly thanked Tinubu for his "thoughtful letter" and commended the Nigerian leader's efforts to tackle insecurity.
"Thank you for your thoughtful letter. Your kind words mean a great deal to me, and I appreciate your decisive leadership on behalf of the Nigerian people," the purported letter stated.
It further praised Tinubu's resolve to address violence affecting Christian communities and reaffirmed U.S. support for Nigeria's fight against terrorism.
The document also referenced a "US-Nigeria 2026 Defence Cooperation Roadmap" and claimed that the United States had deployed Special Operations Forces to assist Nigeria's Armed Forces with training, intelligence and counterterrorism operations.
However, Von Batten-Montague-York contrasted the document with what it described as a genuine White House letter sent by Trump to Argentine President Javier Milei.
According to the firm, unlike the Tinubu correspondence, the Milei letter was publicly released as a scanned document on official White House stationery bearing Trump's signature.
The January 16, 2026 letter reportedly invited Argentina to become a founding member of a proposed international body known as "The Board of Peace," an initiative Trump said was aimed at resolving global conflicts and promoting peace in the Middle East.
The lobbying firm argued that the availability of a signed White House letter to Milei underscored what it described as the unusual presentation of the purported correspondence to President Tinubu, insisting that only the release of the original document would resolve questions surrounding its authenticity.