Benin has offered 2,000 troops to support a planned international force led by Kenya aimed at assisting Haiti national police in combatting armed gangs.
United States Ambassador to the UN, Linda Thomas-Greenfield made the announcement on Monday, February 26 during a press briefing in Georgetown, Guyana,
“This mission is key to helping the Haitian National Police restore peace and security, enabling free and fair elections, and alleviating the humanitarian crisis,” Ms. Thomas-Greenfield said.
The United Nations had earlier authorized this mission in October 2023, responding to a request from Haiti’s unelected government.
According to the U.N. estimates, the conflict in the Caribbean nation killed close to 5,000 people in 2023 and has driven some 300,000 from their homes.
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Speaking in Guyana during the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) summit, Thomas-Greenfield revealed that Benin’s troop offer came to light just before her trip.
She also mentioned that some Caribbean countries that had pledged support had called for more Francophone nations to join the effort.
“The US is committed to supporting the multinational force. We are committed to providing the Multi-national Force with what it needs to deploy on the ground, and we are committed to providing a lot of the logistical support that is required,” she said.
Thomas-Greenfield also said that she had held meetings with Haitian Prime Minister Ariel Henry and encouraged both him and opposition groups to agree on a path forward, noting that no time frame has been set for the country’s long-awaited elections.
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Haiti deployment Planning and Legal Hurdles
However, the lack of mutual agreements between Kenya and Haiti has been at the crux of a Kenyan court ruling blocking the deployment of 1,000 police officers.
Kenyan Courts declared it unconstitutional to deploy 1,000 police officers to the Carribean nation without a police-sharing agreement.
The police officers are supposed to serve as the backbone of the Multinational Security Support mission.
President William Ruto however, vowed that the plan will go ahead, and meetings have since continued.
Ruto said that the mission was in response to an appeal by the Haiti government noting that it was a “calling to humanity” amid concerns questioning the origin of the plan.
The Kenyan government further plans to appeal this ruling, and discussions are underway between Haitian and Kenyan officials to draft a memorandum of understanding.
Haiti’s Prime Minister, Ariel Henry, is set to travel to Nairobi, to finalize details for the deployment of the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), authorized by the UN to help stabilize the crisis-stricken Caribbean nation.
