President William Ruto threatened that, due to the lack of support facing the Multinational Security Support Mission (MSS), Kenya is considering withdrawing.
As the security crisis continues to worsen in the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area and in other provincial cities, many are wondering: what is the MSS doing? It appears that the Mission is struggling to effectively meet current security demands.
One year after the deployment of the first contingents of Kenyan police officers assigned to the MSS, the latter has still not regained control of any territory occupied by armed terrorist gangs. Quite the opposite, in fact. The situation is deteriorating to the point where the list of lost territories is growing, despite the presence of police and military personnel assigned to the Multinational Force.
In a letter to Council President Mohamed Irfaan Ali and UN Secretary-General António Guterres, Kenyan President William Ruto warned that his country may "revisit its commitment" to the ailing MSS in Haiti. The East African country's head of state explained this latest decision by citing a lack of support from the international community.
"We are compelled to review our commitment given the massive failure of the international community to live up to its commitments," Ruto wrote to UN officials, calling for an urgent decision before the mission's current mandate expires.
Four months away from a possible second renewal of the MMS, the Multinational Force has still not conducted large-scale operations aimed at dismantling the armed groups who control 85% of the Port-au-Prince metropolitan area. According to Kenyan President Ruto, this is due to a critical lack of resources.
"Less than 40% of the promised personnel have been deployed and only 11% of the funding needed for the first year has been received, or $68 million out of the estimated $600 million," he said, adding that given this situation, his country is unable to continue leading the operation.
Ruto also warned that key contracts for the mission's logistics operations are about to expire and without clear directives from the Council, Kenya will be forced to withdraw.
This intervention by Kenyan President William Ruto with Council President Ali and Guterres comes exactly one year after Kenya deployed its units as part of the security mission. Since then, recurring criticism has been directed at this Multinational Force, whose primary mission is to support the Haitian National Police (PNH) in the fight against organized crime.
Translated and edited for clarity by CHIP editors
Posted July 9, 2025