The US government has praised President William Ruto’s administration for Kenya’s role in the cease-fire agreement between the governments of Ethiopia and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he spoke with President Ruto on Thursday to congratulate him on Kenya’s role in the Ethiopian peace process.
“Spoke to @StateHouseKenya President Ruto today to congratulate him for his government’s role in advancing peace in northern Ethiopia,” said Blinken.
Blinken’s statement comes just two days after the Ethiopian government and the Tigray People Liberation Front (TPLF) reached an agreement to end their two-year civil war, which has claimed thousands of lives.
The agreement came after marathon talks in South Africa on Wednesday led by high-ranking African Union (AU) officials, including former President Uhuru Kenyatta in his capacity as Kenya’s peace envoy to Ethiopia.
Biden also praised Kenya and other East African Community (EAC) countries for their efforts to stabilize the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), which is currently at war with M23 rebels.
On Wednesday, Ruto dispatched a contingent of Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) soldiers to the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) for a peacekeeping mission.
The troops will join the East African Community Regional Forces (EACRF) contingent and help the DRC repel M23 rebels who have taken up critical positions in the mineral-rich North Kivu province.
Soldiers from the KDF also serve in the United Nations Organization’s Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).
They are expected to carry out MONUSCO’s mandate of protecting civilians, stabilizing the region, and neutralizing armed militias, as well as collaborating with other deployed militaries in the Eastern DRC.
