US exempts Haiti mission from Trump's foreign aid freeze - Ruto

This was revealed in a phone conversation between President William Ruto and United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday, during which the duo reviewed the bilateral relations between Kenya and the US. 

President Ruto indicated that the US had exempted the MSS mission from the 90-day pause, highlighting the need to sustain the peacekeeping quest in Haiti. 

"Our discussion confirmed that the United States has specifically exempted its support for the Multinational Security Support (MSS) Mission in Haiti from the broader pause on federal assistance, recognising the critical need to sustain momentum for the mission and its role in stabilising Haiti and restoring order," Ruto stated. 

On his part, Rubio expressed gratitude to Kenya for leading the mission to the war-torn Caribbean nation and its role in promoting peace in the long-simmering conflict between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the M23 rebels. 

"Rubio spoke with Kenyan President William Ruto to thank him for Kenya’s leadership of the Multinational Security Support mission to Haiti, which remains fully operational, and Kenya’s role in promoting peace in the Democratic Republic of the Congo," read the statement from the US Secretary of State

Following Trump's pause on foreign aid, the fate of the Haiti mission was in doubt owing to financial and logistical challenges.

The United States had pledged up to Ksh.38.5 billion to support the mission. Consequently, President Ruto has been pushing for the mission to be converted into a UN peacekeeping operation. 

Currently, the MSS receives support from voluntary contributions but transitioning to a UN-based mission means that it will be the collective responsibility of all 193 member states to fund the process.