China has denied allegations of funding terror in Nigeria in a statement by the Chinese embassy in the country on Tuesday.
The British newspaper, The Times reported on Saturday that ''Chinese bribed Nigerian militants for access to vast mineral reserves".
“Research shared with The Times from SBM Intelligence, a Lagos-based analytical group, has revealed videos on social media and WhatsApp of militant leaders boasting that they are so powerful that Chinese workers wishing to operate in their areas must pay them ‘rent’.
According to researchers, The Times report said, there is a region in Zamfara where people have close ties with militants.
It added that some of these individuals even act as intermediaries for Chinese miners who have expanded their operations across Nigeria and are in charge of extracting gold. Nigeria is known to possess some of the world's largest gold deposits.
The Chinese embassy in Nigeria said that the claims were ''based on unverified, unclear and unproven information".
The embassy also expressed its ''strong dissatisfaction and objection'' over the allegations.
Nigeria is grappling with insecurity, including an insurgency by the Boko Haram armed group and its offshoot known as the Islamic State's West Africa Province (ISWAP) group, as well as frequent kidnappings for ransom by armed criminal gangs mainly in the north of the country.
The groups involved in the violence have been labelled ''terrorists'' by the Nigerian government.
The Chinese government said it ''was and would never be involved in any form of funding terrorism'' describing the allegations as ''totally irresponsible and unethical, and the intention of the report is seriously questioned".
China said it will continue to co-operate with the Nigerian government ''to promote development and address security issues'' and it would ''reject any intention or action that would smear our cooperation".
In recent years, China's presence in Nigeria has been growing with Chinese companies carrying out mining activities and infrastructural projects in the Africa's largest economy.
Earlier this month the Nigerian senate approved China Development Bank as new financier for the country's Kaduna-to-Kano rail project at a cost of $973 million.
Some of the Chinese mining firms operate in volatile areas of Nigeria where kidnappings for ransom are relatively common.
A number of Chinese nationals have been kidnapped by gunmen in the past - some from their mining sites in the north of the country.
