President William Ruto has reaffirmed Kenya’s commitment to stabilizing Haiti, saying Kenyan forces will not withdraw from the Caribbean nation until there is a clear plan for a new international mission to sustain recent security gains.
Speaking in an interview with France 24, President Ruto said Kenya’s deployment under the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM) has achieved “landmark successes,” but Nairobi will only disengage once a structured transition is in place.
“We were asked to step in, and we believe the mission was a success,” Ruto said.
“But Kenya will not walk away from Haiti without clarity on a transition. We will be there to make sure the next mission, once it is formed, is well structured. It’s not clear when that will be formed, how it will be resourced, there are still many things hanging.”
The President confirmed that the ultimate plan remains to bring Kenyan troops home but warned that leaving without a follow-up mission would create a security vacuum.
He credited Kenyan forces with helping to reclaim critical state infrastructure from gangs, restore essential services, and re-establish government control.
“When we went to Haiti, both the air and sea ports had been overrun by gangs. Today, they are operational. Schools and hospitals had been overrun; today, they are functioning. The palace was under siege; today it hosts the Presidential Council and Prime Minister,” Ruto said.
He added that police headquarters and the training academy had also been secured, enabling the graduation of 700 new officers.
Looking ahead, Ruto outlined three recommendations for the next phase of operations:
- A wider mandate to aggressively pursue gangs
- Stronger logistical support to address the shortages faced during the initial phase
- A larger troop presence to consolidate security gains
“With these measures, we have laid the foundation for a successful intervention and recommended what the future mission should look like,” Ruto said.
