The United Stated Secretary of State Antony Blinken had a call conversation with Kenyan President William Ruto in the wake of unrest and gang violence in Haiti. The two underscored their commitment to a multinational security mission to restore order, according to a statement released by the State Department.
Haiti entered a state of emergency last Sunday after fighting escalated while Prime Minister Ariel Henry was in Nairobi seeking a deal for the long-delayed UN-backed mission. Kenya announced last year it would lead the force but months of domestic legal wrangling have effectively placed the mission on hold.
Blinken also appreciated Kenya’s efforts to ensure there is peace and sanity in the East African region. “Secretary Blinken also offered his appreciation for Kenya’s diplomatic work to support peace and security in the Horn of Africa.”Kenya is expected to deploy at least 1,000 police officers to the Caribbean country of Haiti.
The adoption of Resolution 2699 on October 2, 2023, by the United Nations Security Council authorised the deployment of the multinational security support mission to Haiti.
Kenya agreed to lead the coordination of the international mission after a request by member states. Burundi, Chad, Senegal, Jamaica and Belize have also pledged to send additional troops.
Efforts to salvage the country’s situation have been unsuccessful. Caricom, the 15-nation Caribbean bloc, said in a statement that “the situation on the ground remains dire”.
The Caricom statement said that while regional leaders remain deeply engaged in trying to bring opposition parties and civil society groups together to form a unity government, “the stakeholders are not yet where they need to be.”
“We are acutely aware of the urgent need for consensus to be reached,” according to the statement. “We have impressed on the respective parties that time is not on their side in agreeing to the way forward.”
