Britain backs KDF "cautious" exit from Somalia

NAIROBI, Kenya - Britain has endorsed the Kenya Defense Forces [KDF] "cautious" exit strategy from Somalia, a country which has struggled to diffuse violent extremism, arguing that the withdrawal will be dependent on the stability of the Horn of Africa nation.

Both Britain and Kenya are major security stakeholders in Somalia and have been helping the country to stabilize the following decades of conflict, which have significantly affected operations across the country. While Britain has a training base in Baidoa, KDF has several Forward Operating Bases in Jubaland.

The caution from London comes at the time UK and Kenya troops have started joint training under a newly established military partnership agreed upon earlier this year, the Nation reported. Deputy British High Commissioner Julius Court said Britain is closely monitoring the situation in Somalia.

Like Kenya, Britain has remained coy over the timelines of withdrawal of foreign troops from Somalia with the 2021 deadline fast approaching. The foreign troops are supposed to leave Somalia next year under the Somali Transition Plan [STP].

“The UK continues to monitor the situation in Somalia. Our concern is for the country to achieve stability,” Mr. Court said at the KDF School of Infantry [SOI] in Isiolo, which has traditionally hosted the Royal Forces in Kenya since 1963 when Nairobi attained independence.

Top KDF officials and the envoy witnessed on Wednesday witnessed joint military exercises at Archer’s Post and SOI training facilities in Samburu and Isiolo counties. More than 600 KDF personnel are taking part in the training ahead of deployment to the Africa Union Mission in Somalia [Amisom].

Currently, Kenya has close to 3,500 soldiers serving under AMISOM in Somalia and is mainly based in Jubaland under Sector II and VI. The troops were first deployed in 2011 under Operation Linda Nchi before being absorbed by AMISOM a year later.

Kenya and other countries contributing soldiers to Amisom are expected to leave Somalia by December 2021. This is based on the UN Security Council Resolution 2472 of May 31, 2019, but Nairobi is a little bit cautious due to persistent Al-Shabaab threat across the border and inside Kenya.

President Uhuru Kenyatta has constantly steered away from the topic of when KDF will exit Somalia, saying it depends on the country’s stability. In an interview with France 24, Uhuru, while ruling out timely withdrawal, also said the militants have been significantly degraded following ongoing security operations in Somalia.

KDF officials have lauded the joint training, saying the newly acquired skill-sets will be a game-changer in the war against terror. “Of course this is a game-changer and an opportunity to improve on the gaps we have identified in the past during our mission.

This will improve our military capabilities and also reduce the number of casualties,” KDF School of Infantry Commandant Brigadier Joakim Mwamburi said.

Britain is set to redeploy its troops back into Kenya in January to continue with its training program under the British Army Training Unit in Kenya [Batuk].

The unit-based in Nanyuki had been recalled to the UK earlier in March following the Covid-19 outbreak. “Some of the staffers are already back...we are ready to resume training with our Kenya Defence Forces partners,” Mr. Court said on Wednesday.

According to Brigadier Mark Thornhill, Defence adviser to the British High Commission, Batuk training in Nanyuki will officially resume in January when the troops are expected to jet into the country.

Since March, the Somali National Army [SNA], AMISOM troops, and the US Africa Command have intensified onslaught against the Al-Shabaab militants in central and southern Somalia. Several top commanders have been killed with dozens of other militants arrested by security forces in the country.

Despite the significant gains, US Africa Command said recently in a statement, Al-Shabaab remains a "dangerous terror group in East Africa". The US has close to 500 personnel in Somalia and has already hinted that the troops might stay until 2027.

GAROWE ONLINE