Kenya and the United States have agreed to advance and further strengthen collaborations in defence, peace and security as an anchor to economic progress.

Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi said it is a reflection of the strong partnership and mutual respect being nurtured between Kenya and the United States in further advancing global peacekeeping and security efforts.

“On the regional aspects that we deal with here in terms of security, it has to be a collaborated effort with various partners including the United Nations, the U.S Government and other critical international community so that we can collectively bring peace and stability in the region.” Mudavadi remarked.

He said Kenya welcomes the recognition by the United States acknowledging the leadership and significant contribution by Kenya to international peace and stability citing the recent involvement of Kenya in the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSSM) in Haiti.

“The mission could not have worked if there was no collaboration with the United States, in terms of the logistics and other aspects. The distance from Kenya to Haiti is about 12,000 KM away, and the working together with the government of the United States was absolutely essential in relation to the overall support that was necessary.” Mudavadi said.

“This collaboration helped to galvanize international support for funding of the MSS mission in Haiti.” Mudavadi added.

He made the remarks during a joint media briefing with the visiting U.S Deputy Secretary of State, Mr. Christopher Landau at the OPCS in Nairobi.

“This visit provides an opportunity for both countries to reaffirm their long-standing ties to advance dialogue on matters of mutual interest at both bilateral and regional levels and to further strengthen the strategic partnership between Kenya and the United States.” Mudavadi noted.

“One of the major reasons why I am here is to thank the people and government of Kenya for the immense contribution you have made to international stability especially in Haiti and moreso in other regions in Africa and beyond.” said Launda.

Mudavadi said Kenya and the United States have also made significant progress across trade, investment, counterterrorism, health, education, and development terming the efforts to have been major contributors to shared prosperity and strengthened stability across the region.

“We made significant financial support to the Haiti mission and we worked very close with Kenya which had its police forces in Haiti and they did an amazing job on the ground, and the level of stability we see in Haiti today though still fragile but it could have been much worse if these interventions were not made.” said Launda.

 Kenya and the United States working together both the forces on the ground and the financial contribution every body pitched into that mission and it is a practical example that people will be talking about for decades on the progressive collaboration between Kenya and the United States.” added Launda.

Mudavadi said Kenya welcomes the progress made by the U.S government in renewing the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) for another three years.

This renewal he said is an important milestone for Kenya–U.S. trade, and Kenya looks forward to continued mutually beneficial trade between the two countries.

“The Government of Kenya appreciates the continued support of the United States in strengthening critical infrastructure that enhances operational readiness, and shared efforts to promote regional peace and security.” Noted Mudavadi.

“This visit is also marked by the Ground Breaking Ceremony of the expansion of the Manda Bay runway, a landmark step that underscores the strong security and development cooperation between Kenya and the United States. This is critical in sending a message that security is paramount and that Kenya and the region is getting a lot of support on matters of counterterrorism in working together.” he added.

Mr Landau had earlier in the day met with President William Ruto at State House, Nairobi in an engagement that reflected on gains already made and advancing future cooperation between Kenya and the United States of America.