Museveni to meet Obama in Ethiopia

President Museveni (C) with the Obama and his wife at White House in 2011

Barack Obama may not get quite the rapturous welcome he did when he visited Kenya as a senator back in 2006, but his presence in his ancestral home is something of a coup for the Kenyan leadership, and he is expected to be warmly received.

The country has never had a sitting US president visit before, and understandably there’s a sense of enormous pride. For the Americans, this is a golden opportunity to gain some leverage at a time when security threats posed by the Somali Islamist group al-Shabab, bind both nations together.

From a personal standpoint, it’s a time for Mr Obama, to build on his legacy here. Without doubt, President Obama is trying to “recalibrate” the relationship between America and Kenya after some difficult diplomatic times.

Uhuru Kenyatta was up until recently indicted by the war crimes court in The Hague for charges relating to a previous election. That proved problematic for the US president, whose envoy warned Mr Kenyatta as he campaigned for the presidency back in 2013 that there would be “consequences” as a result of not trying to clear his name first.

Months later, Obama delivered a significant snub to Kenya, bypassing the country altogether during his last African tour. It was deeply felt here in Kenya. Ordinary Kenyans saw it as a personal affront, and the diplomatic sidestepping was met with a ratchetting up of anti-Western sentiment by the Kenyan leadership.

But the charges against Kenyatta have now been dropped, in part due to the Kenyan government’s apparent “lack of cooperation” with the court.

It would appear that all is forgiven, and the words of warmth have returned. Kenyatta confirmed as much in a pre-visit briefing, when he made it clear his US guest was expected to meet his deputy, William Ruto, who still has charges from the International Criminal Court hanging over his head.

The imperative of working to defeat terrorism would appear to trump matters of international justice. In diplomatic speak, they call it “essential contact”.

Kenyatta said “the fight against terror will be central” to bilateral talks, and pointed out that Kenya had “been working in very close collaboration with American agencies” and was expecting to “strengthen” ties during the visit.

That policy of appeasement is certainly something many security watchers in Kenya have sensed. Peter Alling’o, from the Institute of Security in Nairobi, believes the USA is seeking to restore close relations with Kenya, in order to gain a stronger foothold in the region’s security apparatus in the face of al-Shabab attacks.

It may also help to ensure a few more contracts go America’s way. China and its eastern neighbours now play a bigger role in Kenya –  not only in building roads and railways but also in the important area of defence procurement.

Meanwhile, it emerged that President Museveni will only meet Obama in Ethiopia on July 25. There had been reports that Museveni would join Obama in Kenya today but sources at State House discounted this.

- BBC
Additional reporting by Siraje Lubwama.

http://www.observer.ug/news-headlines/38920-obama-returns-to-kenya-museveni-to-see-him-in-ethiopia