Kenyan military ponders role in Gulf War

By Mugo Njeru and Gakuu Mathenge, Nairobi, The Nation (Nairobi), Sunday 12 March 2003

A group of 64 top-level British and Kenyan military officials have held secret talks over Kenya’s role in the war in the Gulf.

The officials discussed the possibility of Kenya being invited to provide logistical support, particularly if the war turns out to be a long-drawn conflict or during the reconstruction of Iraq.

There is no evidence of allied military activity in Kenya, although the country has a treaty allowing British and American forces the use of its airbases and the Port of Mombasa.

The meetings were held at two locations in Laikipia and are said to have centred on the repair of Kenya Air Force facilities, including the Laikipia Airbase at Nanyuki.

The Kenyan delegation to the meetings, held between March 13 and 18, was led by General Julius Karangi and were held at the exclusive Mt Kenya Safari Club and the 100,000-acre Laikipia Ranch owned by author Kuki Galmann.

Though Kenya has close military ties with both the US and Britain, the Government denies that it is under any obligation to take part in the war on Iraq.

National Security minister Chris Murungaru said yesterday Kenya benefits from its good relations with the US, but it cannot be coerced to back the war.

Friendship is not conditional, he said.

Speaking in Nyeri Town, Dr Murungaru said the Government’s decisions regarding the war against terrorism and the Iraqi conflict were not meant to please any side.

Kenya enjoys friendly relations with the US in the same way it has good relations with other countries, including those in the Middle East, he said.

But friendship does not mean that the government could give in to demands by any side.

The Government is unhappy about the second Gulf War, he said, because it was not sanctioned by the United Nations.

The conflict should have been prosecuted within the United Nations. Any government’s involvement in the war will be guided by decisions of the UN Security Council, Dr Murungaru said.

Neither the British nor the US governments had requested to use their military bases in Kenya in the offensive against Iraq, he said.

If they do, we shall consider the circumstances under which they want to use them, the reasons and to what extent to allow them, the minister said

He, however, stressed that Kenya was ready to co-operate with any country in the fight against terrorism.

Terming terrorist fears in the country as real, Dr Murungaru said the Government had put in place measures to protect major installations.

On Friday, four foreigners were arrested for filming the Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Nairobi. They had no identification papers and police have vowed to lock them up until they are satisfied that they have no links with terrorism.

The police have so far been unable to establish the nationality of the suspects, Dr Murungaru said yesterday.

It is feared that the Iraqi regime, or sympathisers with terrorist links, might retaliate by attacking US and British facilities abroad, or by attacking countries which are seen as allied to them.

Dr Murungaru said: The suspects’ behaviour is not normal. We are taking the issue very seriously and the arrest was part of our vigilance.

He revealed that many more suspects had been arrested in following the terrorism alert. When asked for details, including the number of those in custody, the minister said the Government did not want to burden people with frightening information.

On the military talks, it could not be established what conclusions were arrived at but sources said top on the agenda was Kenya’s unserviceable American-made F5 and British-made Tomcat fighters, grounded for lack of repair and maintenance.

The Americans have been servicing a few of the F5s every year, but the majority are out of service for lack of money for maintenance.

The money the Government provides has gone almost exclusively to maintaining training aircraft, the source added.

However, almost all the Tomcat jets are grounded for a variety of reasons, including failure by British suppliers to send maintenance personnel, and lack of spare parts and cash.

The Air Force has been shopping for replacements for its ageing fighter jets, the source said, and bonding the old ones for disposal.

The meetings were like an evaluation, sort of exchange of notes on the ground situation, another source said.

Among issues discussed was the refurbishment of our military runways and radar systems that have been in a state of disrepair in the past 10 years when relations with major donors and the previous Kanu regime soured leading to withdrawal of several budget support schemes.

On the role that Kenya could be asked to play in the war, the source said: The most Kenya could do would be in logistics like providing space for repair of equipment and vacation fighters if it turns out to be a long drawn war.

It would not be surprising, however, if the allies were to ask to use the Kenyan facilities in support of the war, the source said.

Kenya has provided training facilities for the British military for the past 50 years and both Britain and the US are among the most significant supporters of Kenya’s military training programmes.

The British Army has a permanent Military Training Liaison Staff base at Kahawa Barracks, Nairobi, and a permanent training and equipment base in Nanyuki.

The Americans, through the State Department, have been financing the African Crisis Response Initiative (ACRI), a disaster and joint response-training programme for African military forces, including Kenya, for the last several years.

General Tommy Franks, Commander, US Central Command, was among guests at the first Gold Spear Summit two years ago in Kenya to review the progress of ACRI.

The US has also over the years, apart from last year, given selected African countries, including Kenya, grants and low-interest loans through the US defence Security Co-operation Agency, to finance arms purchases from America.

In 2001, Kenya received Sh76 million, the third highest funding after Nigeria’s Sh760m and Guinea’s Sh228m.

This year, under the same facility, Kenya requested for $1.5 million (Sh114 m). The request is yet to be met.

At the same time, the US provides training to African military officers from 44 countries, including Kenya, at its military facilities.

Last year alone, the cost to the US government of training Kenyan officers was an estimated $6m (Sh45 million), the fourth highest after South Africa, Senegal and Nigeria.

According to the US State Department, the US has no bases in Africa, but relies on agreement of African governments to use local bases and other military facilities in times of need.

Only Kenya has concluded a formal agreement with Washington for the use of local military facilities.

The agreement, signed in February 1980, allows US troops to use the Port of Mombasa, as well as airfields at Embakasi and Nanyuki.

These facilities were used to support the disastrous American military intervention in Somalia in 1992-94, and have been used in the past year to support US and other coalition forces involved in counter-terrorism operations.