Ruto, US govt agree on condition to be met before deploying Kenyan Police to Haiti
By Joel Sang, March 13, 2024
President William Ruto has revealed that he had a phone call with the United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken in regard to Haiti’s political crisis.
Kenya and the US are at the forefront of pushing a security mission that will help restore order in the Caribbean country.
The resignation of Ariel Henry as Haiti’s Prime Minister complicated the security deployment even further. This pushed the neighbouring countries to convene a high-level meeting to discuss the next steps concerning restoring peace in the country.
“I had a telephone conversation with United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken on the developments in Haiti.
“Blinken briefed me on the decision of the Summit of Caribbean Countries (Caricom) and the US, together with other partners, on the political situation in Haiti. He informed me that a new presidential council will be formed shortly to manage the situation in Haiti,” Ruto said in a statement on X.
The Kenyan security mission, which is expected to involve 1,000 police officers, will be implemented after the presidential council is formed.
“I assured Secretary Blinken that Kenya will take leadership of the UN Security Support Mission in Haiti to restore peace and security in Haiti as soon as the Presidential Council is in place under an agreed process,” Ruto added.
Haiti’s crisis
Meanwhile, Henry left his position following continued pressure and increasing violence in his country.
His resignation came as Caribbean leaders met for a regional caucus to discuss the political situation in Haiti.
Henry resigned while he was in Puerto Rico after failing to make a return to Haiti with armed gangs, making his return an impossible mission. The installation of a transition council meant that even his government resigned.
Meanwhile, Caricom demands that the transition council be made up of seven voting members and two observers and include representatives from several coalitions, the private sector, civil society, and one religious leader.
If one intends to run in Haiti’s next elections, he or she will not participate. The council is expected to be appointed in the next few days, and it will then go ahead and appoint an interim PM.
This move is expected to pave the way for elections, which will be the first such exercise since 2016.