Subsequent to a recent visit by the US Secretary for Defense Mr. Lloyd Austin III, this morning at the Defense Headquarters, Hon. Duale had the pleasure of holding bilateral talks with a delegation of US Senators led by Hon. Mark Wayne Mullin and the US Ambassador to Kenya Her Excellency Ms. Meg Whitman.

At this meeting, Hon. Duale informed the delegation that Kenya is increasingly playing a leadership role in pursuit of regional peace and security in the Horn of Africa and the Great Lakes Region which is evident by the country’s active role in Somalia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Kenya and the U.S have an active framework for Defense Cooperation running from 2023 to 2028 for the mutual benefit of the two countries. Additionally, the two countries continue to interact through national Bilateral Strategic Dialogue (BSD) and biennial ministerial Bilateral Defense Forum (BDF).

“Kenya and the United States (U.S) have enjoyed long and strategic partnerships with the latter investing heavily in modernizing our security structures and agencies to address emerging threats through intelligence sharing, maritime security, joint training and military assistance through Excess Defense Articles (EDA).” – stated CS Duale.

The current global security landscape provides common security challenges which calls for shared solutions.

Both countries have shared the continued interest cementing their partnership and collaboration by leveraging on their strengths for the mutual benefit of the two countries.

During the discussions, CS Duale was accompanied by the Chief of Defense Forces General Francis Ogolla, Principal Secretary Mr. Patrick Mariru, and Assistant Chief of Defense Forces in charge of Operations Doctrine and Training (ACDF OPD&T) Major General Fred Leuria and the Chiefs of different branches at the Defense Headquarters.