U.S.-Kenya Relations: Current Political and Security Issues (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised July 23, 2015 |
| Report Number |
R42967 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Lauren Ploch Blanchard, Specialist in African Affairs |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
| Older Revisions |
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Summary:
The U.S. government views Kenya as a strategic partner and a key regional actor in East Africa, and as critical to regional counterterrorism efforts. Kenya has repeatedly been a target of terrorist attacks, and, as the deadly September 2013 assault on a Nairobi shopping mall and subsequent attacks have underscored, terrorist threats in Kenya remain a serious concern. Heightened threats have led the U.S. government to reevaluate the size of its presence in the country, which hosts the largest U.S. diplomatic mission in Africa and one of four major U.N. offices worldwide.
Kenya's military plays a key role in regional operations against Al Shabaab in Somalia. The Al Qaeda-affiliated Somali insurgent group has declared its attacks in Kenya, in part, as retaliation for Kenya's military operations in Somalia, and has sought recruits from Kenya's minority Muslim population, not only to fight in Somalia but to wage an insurgency inside Kenya. The Westgate Mall incident was, at the time, Kenya's deadliest terrorist attack since the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombing and Al Shabaab's first successful large-scale operation in the Kenyan capital.
Kenya is a regional hub and sub-Saharan Africa's fourth-largest economy. It ranks among the top U.S. foreign aid recipients in the world and among the top security assistance recipients on the continent. Bilateral assistance has totaled more than $600 million annually in recent years.
The widespread violence that followed Kenya's disputed 2007 elections tarnished Kenya's generally peaceful reputation. A new constitution adopted in 2010 under the unity government that was formed after the crisis set in motion several major changes to Kenya's political system, including the devolution of resources and responsibilities to 47 new county governments. The next elections are expected in 2017.
The election in March 2013 of President Uhuru Kenyatta and Vice President William Ruto complicates the historically strong relationship between Kenya and the United States. Kenyatta, whose victory against former Prime Minister Raila Odinga was deemed credible by most observers, and Ruto face charges before the International Criminal Court (ICC) for their alleged role in crimes against humanity during violence that followed Kenya's last elections in December 2007. Ruto's ICC trial commenced in September 2013; Kenyatta's begins in November. Their supporters have portrayed the cases as part of an international conspiracy against Kenya, and as emblematic of racial bias on the part of a court that has, to date, exclusively targeted Africans for prosecution. This was a campaign message during the 2013 elections, in which voting largely followed ethnic lines. The September vote by Kenya's parliament to withdraw from the Rome Statute of the ICC does not affect the current trials and is, for now, largely symbolic.
Kenya's key aid donors and senior Obama Administration officials have been supportive of the ICC process for the country, viewing impunity for state corruption and political violence as a major challenge that continues to threaten Kenya's long-term stability. This may be a key issue for Congress in the coming months, as it weighs various governance, human rights, and security priorities in the country.
