TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA) – US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has confirmed that Russian military personnel have entered an airbase in Niger that hosts US forces, following a recent decision by Niger’s military rulers to expel US troops.News of the Russian deployment to the airbase follows after Niger’s military rulers told Washington in March that it must withdraw the nearly 1,000 US military personnel stationed in the country, Al Jazeera reported.

Reuters news agency cited a senior US defence official on Thursday, who, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed that Russian troops were present but not mingling with US forces at Airbase 101, located next to Diori Hamani International Airport in Niger’s capital Niamey.

Russia’s deployment of military personnel to the base puts US and Moscow forces in close proximity at a time when relations between both countries are increasingly tense amid Washington’s support for Ukraine following the Russian militay operation in this country.

“[The situation] is not great but, in the short-term, manageable,” the US official said.

Asked about the airbase report by a journalist, Defense Secretary Austin said on Friday that he saw no significant issue as the Russian troops did not have access to US personnel or equipment.

“Airbase 101 where our forces [are], is a Nigerien air force base that is co-located with an international airport in the capital city.

The Russians are in a separate compound and don’t have access to US forces or access to our equipment,” Austin told a news conference in Honolulu.

SD/PR