Kenya Insights

Tag: Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS)

  • Russian Junior Diplomat Schools Kenya’s Top Diplomat On Haiti

    Russian Junior Diplomat Schools Kenya’s Top Diplomat On Haiti

    Nairobi, Kenya – October 6, 2025 — Kenya’s top diplomat, Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Dr Korir Sing’oei, was left embarrassed after a Russian junior envoy publicly corrected his interpretation of a United Nations Security Council vote on Haiti.

    The incident unfolded after Dr Sing’oei claimed the Council had “unanimously” approved the creation of a new Gang Suppression Force (GSF) to replace the Kenya-led Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), whose mandate expired on October 4.

    In reality, Russia, China, and Pakistan had abstained from the vote, making it far from unanimous.

    Russia’s First Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN, Dmitry Polyansky, seized the moment to correct the Kenyan official in a post on X, saying, “We didn’t block this proposal with heavy hearts and only heeding to the pleas from Latin American and African countries. But we are afraid that the Council is being dragged into another adventure.”

    The GSF, created under Resolution 2793 (2025), will deploy 5,500 police and military personnel supported by a UN Technical Office responsible for logistics and resource mobilisation.

    It has a “robust mandate” to conduct intelligence-led counter-gang operations aimed at neutralising and deterring armed groups in Haiti, which continues to grapple with gang violence and political instability.

    Dr Sing’oei had welcomed the move, describing it as “a strong signal of international resolve to restore peace and stability in Haiti,” but his misstatement on the vote exposed a gap in understanding of UN procedures.

    At the Security Council, a unanimous resolution means approval by all 15 members, including the five permanent members with veto powers — the United States, Russia, China, France, and the United Kingdom.

    Abstentions signal reservations, meaning the resolution passes but is not unanimous.

    Russia and China have long opposed foreign-led security missions in Haiti, warning against what they term “external interference” and “failed interventions.”

    This is not the first time Dr Sing’oei has faced diplomatic embarrassment. In February, he apologised after posting a fake video of CNN anchor Fareed Zakaria praising President William Ruto’s diplomacy — a clip later confirmed as a deepfake.

    “I regret any confusion this may have caused,” he said, promising to “go to school on AI stuff” through a new training programme at the Foreign Service Academy.

    In June, the PS drew more criticism for defending police actions during anti-government protests by sharing videos of violent crackdowns in other countries, which many saw as justifying local brutality.

    The latest exchange with the Russian diplomat has reignited debate about Kenya’s diplomatic communication and the competence of its top officials in representing the country on the global stage.

  • More Kenyan Police Arrive In Haiti To Shore Up Security Mission After US Funding Limbo

    More Kenyan Police Arrive In Haiti To Shore Up Security Mission After US Funding Limbo

    More than 100 Kenyan police arrived in Haiti’s capital on Thursday to reinforce a security mission whose future has been in limbo, after the U.S. froze some funding before passing a waiver to unlock a separate batch of funds.

    U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, speaking from Santo Domingo alongside Dominican Republic President Luis Abinader, acknowledged that the current mission, backed by the United Nations, was not enough to solve the current crisis.

    Violent gangs, armed with weapons largely trafficked from the U.S., have united in the Haitian capital Port-au-Prince and now control most of the city. Gangs also control a swathe of other areas, including agricultural heartlands.

    “The solution for Haiti is in the hands of the Haitian people, in the hands of the Haitian elite,” Rubio said. “But we will help, we cannot ignore the problems there.”

    A new contingent of 144 Kenyan police officers was sent to Port-au-Prince, Haiti on Thursday to join the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission aimed at combating gang violence in the Caribbean nation.

    The security mission, approved by the U.N. Security Council but not led by the U.N., has struggled to make headway in fighting gangs as its numbers remain far under target and it relies on voluntary contributions from member nations.

    A contingent of 144 Kenyan soldiers touched down in Port-au-Prince on Thursday, with Kenyan President William Ruto adding he had spoken to Rubio about the mission.

    The U.N. warned this week that the U.S. had frozen more than $13 million in funding for the security force that it had already paid into the U.N.’s dedicated fund, as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s 90-day pause on foreign aid.

    The move threw the already-shaky mission into limbo, with Haitians worried it would be shuttered altogether.

    The State Department later said that Rubio had approved waivers on $40.7 million in foreign assistance to the Haitian National Police and the security mission.

    That assistance will not, however, go into the dedicated U.N. fund, a State Department spokesperson said.

    The violence in Haiti has displaced record numbers of residents, many internally but others fleeing to the neighboring Dominican Republic, with which Haiti shares the island of Hispaniola.

    Rubio said the U.S. would not ask Dominican President Abinader to accept an influx of Haitian migrants.

    Abinader in recent months launched a deportation drive to return some 10,000 migrants, mostly Haitians, to their home countries every week.
    Abinader on Thursday tapped a military officer as drug czar, similar to Canada’s “fentanyl czar” post created to appease demands by Trump to crack down on the flow of illicit drugs.

    Rubio will also sign a waiver to unlock funds for foreign aid programs in the Dominican Republic, he said.

    (Reuters)

  • UN Security Council Authorizes 12-Month Extension For Kenya Police In Haiti

    UN Security Council Authorizes 12-Month Extension For Kenya Police In Haiti

    The United Nations Security Council has authorized a 12-month extension for the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS) in Haiti, which Kenya leads.

    Acting under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, the Council extended the current mandate, as set out in resolution 2699 (2023), to October 2, 2025. This extension aims to support the Haitian National Police in maintaining security and sustaining the gains achieved by the MSS mission.

    The decision was immediately welcomed by Kenya’s National Police Service.

    “The National Police Service reaffirms its commitment to international law enforcement, working closely with the people of Haiti, and partners supporting the MSS to ensure peace and security in Haiti,” said NPS in a statement.

    The UNSC authorised the Haiti mission last year in response to escalating violence, criminal activities, and human rights abuses that threaten the peace, stability, and security of Haiti and the surrounding region.

    The mission’s objectives include restoring order, combating criminal gangs, and enabling the interim government to operate effectively.

    The first contingent of Kenyan police arrived in Haiti in June. Since then, they have worked alongside local personnel to successfully liberate several areas in the capital, Port-au-Prince, that were previously controlled by criminal gangs.