Nigeria's Buhari seeking contact with militants to end insurgency -statement

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari speaks during a news conference after meeting with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in Abuja, Nigeria March 2, 2016 REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde

ABUJA (Reuters) - Nigeria is talking to oil companies and seeking to make contact with the leaders of militant groups in an effort to end attacks on oil facilities in the Niger Delta, President Muhammadu Buhari said on Monday. "Another serious form of insecurity has reared its head in the Niger Delta. The objective is to colonise the country economically by sabotaging oil and gas installations," Buhari said in a statement. "We are trying to speak with their leaders to know how many groups there are." (Reporting by Felix Onuah and Ulf Laessing; Editing by David Goodman)