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NEWS & CURRENT AFFAIRS

The Nairobian

US support for Haiti mission continues despite aid freeze, Ruto says

National

By Winfrey Owino | Feb 06, 2025

**President William Ruto.** [File,Standard]

President William Ruto says the United States has exempted its support for the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission in Haiti from a broader aid freeze.

This follows Kenya’s deployment of additional troops to Haiti on Thursday. In a post on his X page, Ruto said the exemption was confirmed during a phone conversation with Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

"I had a telephone conversation with United States Secretary of State @SecRubio. We reviewed bilateral relations between Kenya and the US and reaffirmed our mutual commitment to strengthening our existing cooperation," Ruto said in a statement on Thursday, February 07.

"Our discussion confirmed that the United States has specifically exempted its support for the Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission in Haiti from the broader pause on federal assistance, recognising the critical need to sustain momentum for the mission and its role in stabilising Haiti and restoring order."

Ruto added that they also discussed regional peace and security, particularly the situation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), including the upcoming joint meeting between the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC), scheduled for Friday and Saturday in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

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Minutes before Ruto’s post, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs clarified that while the US has exempted support for the Haiti mission, USD 15 million of its contribution remains on pause as part of the aid freeze.

"While the U.S. contribution to the UN Trust Fund for MSS Haiti is on pause, it is USD 15 million of the U.S. contribution that is affected by the current freeze," the ministry said.

The ministry also stated that out of the USD 110 million budget, USD 85 million has already been disbursed by countries including the United States, Canada, France, Spain, Italy, and Algeria.