Kenyan leader assures US, Canada of police deployment to Haiti despite politics

By Andrew Wasike

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) – Kenya’s president has reaffirmed the nation's commitment to deploy police officers to Haiti as soon as the Caribbean nation’s presidential council is in place under an agreed process.

In a phone call with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, William Ruto confirmed the East African nation's determination to move forward with deploying 1,000 police officers to Haiti despite recent political developments there.

"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 said on X.

Separately, in a Wednesday phone call with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Ruto and Trudeau said there is an urgent need to restore democratic governance and security and tackle humanitarian crises facing Haiti.

Trudeau praised Kenya's leadership of the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission in Haiti and pledged financial support of $80.5 million from Canada for it.

Despite the challenges posed by Haiti's transitional process,

Ruto assured Trudeau of Kenya's commitment to supporting stability efforts in the country.

This affirmations to the US and Canada come amid Haiti's ongoing efforts to establish a transitional presidential council following the resignation of Prime Minister Ariel Henry earlier this week and the 2021 assassination of President Jovenel Moise, which helped push the country into chaos.

Earlier this week, Kenya announced a temporary hold on the planned deployment following uncertainties arising from the political situation in Haiti.

Haiti has been struggling with gang violence and political instability for years. The situation has worsened in recent months, with kidnappings, killings, armed robberies, and other violent crimes becoming commonplace.

The Haitian government has requested international assistance to help restore order and security.