Kenya joins UN Security Council for two years
The UN Security Council in New York.
Stephane LEMOUTON / POOL / AFP
Text by: RFI Follow
2 min
As of January 1, Kenya officially enters the United Nations Security Council as a non-permanent member.
He will sit there for two years.
Its role could be important as the Horn of Africa enters a period of uncertainty, between the conflict in Tigray in Ethiopia and the upcoming elections in Somalia which promise to be explosive.
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With our correspondent in Nairobi,
Charlotte Simonart
Kenya, guarantor of stability in the region, its voice will count in the Security Council.
Among its objectives in particular: to include the group of shebabs on the list of terrorist organizations of the UN, like Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State.
This would allow a global action to eradicate this movement, author of numerous attacks in Somalia and Kenya.
Diplomatically, Nairobi could benefit from its seat in its
conflict with Somalia
.
The two neighbors are fighting over an oil-bearing maritime territory and have been engaged in a merciless diplomatic battle ever since.
On the other hand, the
Ethiopian file will prove to be more delicate
.
Addis Ababa wants at all costs to make the conflict in Tigray an internal problem while the European Union, in particular, is campaigning for an international intervention.
Kenya should play the wait-and-see card before positioning itself to spare its northern neighbor.
Finally, during these two years on the Security Council, Nairobi could well be torn between two major allies: the United States on the one hand for the security aspect and China on the other economically.
The two powers are engaged in a battle of influence.
It is difficult for Kenya to choose sides.
But the arrival of Joe Biden to power could also be a game-changer.
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