The United States government has maintained its stance of not deploying its troops to fight alongside Kenyan police officers in Haiti.
Addressing the media during a press briefing on Friday, March 22, White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby affirmed that the US would solely be providing external support to Kenya.
Kirby stated that discussions with the Kenyan government regarding the mission were ongoing, emphasizing that the US remained committed to assisting Kenya in restoring normalcy to the gang-afflicted nation.
Furthermore, he mentioned that the US government was actively involved in facilitating the establishment of a transitional government.
Notably, Kenya is waiting for the transitional leadership to take office before police can be deployed.
“Hopefully, we’ll see some movement here in the coming days about their selection of individuals for governance in Haiti who can be credible and can meet the aspirations of the Haitian people.
“Number two, we’re working with Kenya on a Kenyan-led multinational security support mission, which would not include U.S. troops on the ground as part of that mission. But we are working with Kenyans on what that can look like, and what support they might need externally from the United States,” he stated.
Reports indicate that the US has drafted a guideline for the Kenyan mission. The guidelines are needed by the US lawmakers before funding for the mission can be approved.
Further, the communication advisor noted that the US security officials were in the active evacuation of its citizens.
Kenya is set to deploy 1,000 police officers to Haiti. The Kenyan officers will be leading the mission which aims to restore peace.
Other countries are also expected to support the Kenyan mission with additional troops. One of the countries that pledged to send troops alongside Kenya is Jamaica.
Meanwhile, Former United States special envoy for Haiti, Dan Foote has cautioned that Kenyan forces could be outnumbered by the criminal gangs. According to the United Nations, there are over 200 armed gangs in Haiti.
“A thousand isn’t going to cut it and while they have commitments for double or triple that, that’s still not going to cut it. Every time there has been a military intervention in Haiti in the past 20 years, it’s had a minimum of 20,000 troops or police going in there,” he stated.
By WASHINGTON MITO
Source-https://www.kenyans.co.ke/
