The era of diplomatic vacuum is over. The new Kenyan ambassador, Jessica Muthoni Gakinya, officially presented to the Head of Moroccan diplomacy, Nasser Bourita, the illustrated copies of her credentials, as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Kenya to HM King Mohammed VI.
During an audience held Friday at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bourita gave her a warm welcome worthy of a leader of a country to which the Kingdom attaches particular importance to the African continent, confides a well-informed diplomatic source.
The new ambassador was appointed on March 8 by President William Ruto, before being ratified by Parliament. She carries her country’s ambition to get closer to the Kingdom with a strategy already defined, the broad outlines of which she explained to the deputies. Two areas of cooperation are being targeted as a priority, namely fertilizers and trade in certain basic necessities such as Kenyan tea and coffee. Naironbi wants to quickly solicit Moroccan expertise to house a fertilizer factory on its soil.
Thus, the installation of the new Kenyan ambassador marks a new chapter in bilateral relations between the two countries which, until then, had strained relations because of Kenya’s position on the Sahara issue, considered historically hostile. However, the new president, William Ruto, seems less dogmatic than his predecessors.
As soon as he came to power, he expressed his sympathy for the Kingdom, whose Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nasser Bourita, he warmly received during his inauguration ceremony. On the same day, he announced the termination of recognition of the Polisario, before he retracted under pressure from the old guard in Nairobi.
Despite this unfortunate sequence, the Kenyan president continued to want to get closer to the Kingdom by holding meetings with senior officials, including the Head of Government, Aziz Akhannouch, on the sidelines of the Dakar summit on food security. He expressed his desire to strengthen strategic ties between the two countries in a tweet published after this meeting, which took place in a cordial atmosphere.
A few months later, William Ruto sent a message to HM King Mohammed VI, through his Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Kenya, Korrir Sing’Oei, who handed the letter to Nasser Bourita. The Kenyan Head of State declared that he wanted to develop trade and investment after the establishment of the embassy in Rabat and to work more at the level of the African Union.
These multiple favorable signals from Kenya show how Nairobi has changed its perception of the Kingdom, which it now sees as a key player in Africa.
This paradigm shift would be likely to lead Kenya to change its position on the Sahara, especially since the new master of Nairobi is in favour of it and seems to be waiting for the right moment to cut ties with the separatist front.
This article is originally published on lopinion.ma
