Kenyan President’s State Visit: An Antidote to U.S. Troubles in Africa?
New York TimesMay 22
Biden to Designate Kenya as Major Non-NATO Ally During State Visit
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The Facts
US officials have confirmed that Pres. Joe Biden will confer major non-NATO ally status on Kenya during the state visit of Pres. William Ruto to Washington. Kenya will be the first sub-Saharan African country to receive the designation.
Major ally status would give Kenya access to some of the military and financial benefits that NATO members receive, but without assurances of mutual defense. The move will take effect 30 days after Biden informs Congress of the decision.
The Spin
Pro-establishment narrative
This development will help make the world safer. NATO, and the Western rules-based international order benefits greatly from this East African powerhouse making such a move. Tumult on the continent has allowed Russia and China to expand their pernicious influence, and Kenya can help ensure stability and order. Kenya gains access to military resources it needs, and the US gains a valuable partner in the fight against terrorism in this win-win move.
Establishment-critical narrative
Ruto's Kenya is no paragon of democracy or liberal values, with this recent news being a transparent attempt by the US to stem the crushing losses it has suffered in terms of its influence in Africa. After Chad and Niger threw off the yoke of American presence by asking their troops to leave, Kenya is now chasing Western approval and money. Their unpopular excursion into Haiti at the behest of the US is but one example of this.