President William Ruto travelled to Mogadishu in Somalia on Wednesday, February 1, for a joint Heads of State and Government summit as part of efforts to stop violent extremism in the region.
The Head of State was accompanied by the Defence Cabinet Secretary Aden Duale.
Kenya, Ethiopia, and Djibouti are collectively referred to as Somalia’s frontline states because of their contribution to troops deployed to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS).
“Arrived in Mogadishu for a regional meeting of frontline states on efforts to stabilize Somalia and eradication of terrorism,” Ruto stated.
Other nations taking part in the summit include Djibouti, represented by President Ismail Omer Guelleh and the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, represented by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed
The summit, led by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia, was held as a result of an ongoing campaign by the Somali Security Forces to degrade the capability of all terrorist groups and diminish their operations in Somalia.
According to an official document from the summit, the meeting showed commitment from the East African states to continue offerings their assistance to the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) in its efforts to liberate itself from terrorist attacks.
"The Summit applauds President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's vision of a comprehensive, all-government approach to defeating terrorists through military, financial, and ideological means," the document read in part.
Additionally, the heads of state agreed to make a final push for joint operations in the areas that remained under terrorist attack to completely liberate the whole of Somalia from Al-Shabaab.
"The move would allow ATMIS troops to be drawn down and security responsibilities gradually transferred to Somali security forces," the official document from the summit explained.
President Sheikh stressed the urgent need for the countries to jointly plan a decisive operational strategy against Al-Shabaab and acknowledged the need to mobilize regional support for timely and decisive operations.
Kenya has experienced a number of terror attacks staged by al-Shabaab militants.
A recent victim, Sadia Abdikadir Hassan, was airlifted to Kenyatta National Hospital on Thursday, January 5, after Al-Shabaab militants shot her in the head.
Besides Somalia, Kenya continues to play a key role in the search for peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
