Nairobi — The United States Secretary of State Anthony Blinken has reiterated the importance of paying Kenyan troops participating in the Haiti operation on time.
Answering one of the questions in regards to the mission in a press conference on Wednesday, Blinken stressed that adequately paying the security personnel onboard, the mission will be 'critical' in ensuring its effectiveness.
Blinken, however, cemented that more money will be needed for the mission to properly support and pay the additional troops that are anticipated to join it from Kenya and other nations.
"We have some money in the bank to do that, including through the UN fund that's been established. But as we're projecting out and as we're looking at growing the MSS mission itself, we also have to figure out what's going to be required to pay for that, and I think we're going to need more funding to do that," he stated.
Over the past several months, over 380 Kenyan personnel have arrived in support of the Haitian National Police as part of this mission, with more to come.
The multinational force, led by Kenya and including contingents from Chile, Jamaica, Grenada, Paraguay, Burundi, Chad, Nigeria, and Mauritius, operates under the authorisation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 2699. This force aims to restore security and facilitate the organisation of free and reliable elections in Haiti.
The Kenyan units involved include the Rapid Deployment Unit, Anti-Stock Theft Unit, General Service Unit, and Border Patrol Unit, all trained for professional combat situations.
Following their deployment, the troops have been working closely with local authorities to conduct joint patrols and secure strategic locations, including hospitals, airports, ports, roads, schools, and key intersections, and successfully securing some of them from the gangs.
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Thanks to the intervention, Blinken says, the reopening of these key infrastructural assets has catalysed a steady resumption of normacy in the country's capital, Port-au-Prince.
"As a result, the airport reopened. Commercial flights have resumed, allowing goods to enter the country. In parts of Port-au-Prince, there's more economic activity, more markets reopened, more people venturing out," he stated.
Blinken further asserted that the United States will be at the forefront of actively teeming with the troops to ensure that they receive appropriate training, equipment, and financial support to combat insecurity in various parts of Haiti.
"The United States, for our part, has already delivered over $300 million to support this multinational mission--sending armoured vehicles, radios, and night-vision goggles; standing up an entire base of operations--and we'll be getting more assistance here more quickly," he stated.
