May 7, 2025
- Meeting marks the first in-person High-Level talk between U.S-Kenyan officials
- Secretary Rubio announces future visit to Kenya
Secretary Marco Rubio and Kenyan Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs Minister Musalia Mudavadi held a High-level meeting at the State Department in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday to further strengthen the US-Kenya strategic partnership.
According to a readout statement of the meeting issued by the State Department Spokesperson Tammy Bruce following the event, Secretary Rubio and Kenyan Prime Cabinet Secretary and Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs Musalia Mudavadi reaffirmed the importance of US-Kenya bilateral relationship. They discussed how to build on their partnership to deliver prosperity for their people by advancing shared economic interests.
Secretary Rubio also praised and thanked Kenya for its leadership in the multilateral security support mission in Haiti and its longstanding role in promoting regional peace and security in Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, as well as working closely with the U.S. on counterterrorism efforts to counter al-Shabaab.
Following their High-level meeting, Secretary Rubio announced on X social media that he plans to visit Kenya in the near future.
Mudavadi’s visit to Washington marks the first in-person high-level engagement between the two countries since President Trump returned to office in January and comes almost a year after the Biden-Harris hosted President William S. Ruto and First Lady Rachel Ruto for an Official U.S. and White House State Visit, the first African Head of State to receive grand ceremony at the White House in nearly 15 years. Several public-private partnership trade deals as well as American private sector investments were signed between the U.S. and Kenya during the weeklong visit, which also included a visit to Tyler Perry Studios, in Atlanta, The Carter Center, and the U.S. CDC.
In Washington, President Ruto, along with his delegation was also hosted by bipartisan members of the U.S. Congress and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
Mudavadi confirmed in a statement that his visit to the State Department Wednesday received a renewed commitment from the Trump administration to deepen diplomatic engagement with Kenya and expand trade and investment ties.
The meeting also marks a gesture from the Trump administration to revive the recently stalled US-Kenya trade agreement negotiation, which initially kicked off during the last year of President Trump’s first term. The bilateral trade negotiation was worked on by the Biden-Harris administration and neared completion at the end of 2024 but was stalled after the November election.
In March, Secretary Rubio and President Ruto spoke on the phone and have remained engaged in their discussion on regional as well as global security issues. President Trump and President Ruto have also spoken on the phone, with Ruto providing Trump with updates on the Haiti mission as well as the security issues in the Eastern DRC.
Washington observers of US-Africa relations, diplomats, experts and businesses are hopeful that this High-level visit will restore momentum to US-Kenya longstanding bilateral commitments that had slowed amid shifting global alliances.
