Inaugural Bilateral Strategic Dialogue in Washington

Washington DC. Amb. Monica Juma, Cabinet Secretary for Foreign Affairs arrived in Washington DC this afternoon, for the inaugural Bilateral Strategic Dialogue between Kenya and the US. The delegation of Kenya includes Dr. Fred Matiangi, the Cabinet Secretary for Interior and Coordination of National Government. Also in the delegation are high level government officials from the Ministries of Defence, Interior, Trade and Foreign Affairs.

The Bilateral Strategic Dialogue is a structured mechanism agreed upon by President Uhuru Kenyatta and President Donald Trump during the State visit to Washington DC in August 2018. To be held biannually, the BSD will review progress in the implementation of agreed areas of cooperation, explore new areas of engagement and modalities for strengthening the growing diverse bilateral relations between Kenya and the USA.

This inaugural BSG will take place between 7th and 8th May 2019, and will focus on the following four pillars:

a) Economic Prosperity, Trade & Investment;
b) Defence Cooperation;
c) Democracy & Governance;
d) Regional and Multilateral Issues.

CS Juma thanked the US Government for convening this first session of the BSD; ‘I wish from the onset to commend the Government of the United States of America for hosting the inaugural meeting of the Bilateral Strategic Dialogue. This is a clear demonstration of its commitment to our strategic partnership. The Kenyan delegation looks forward to productive engagements in the light of the very successful preparatory sessions that have taken place so far.’ CS Juma is set to start her meetings today with Mr. David Trachtenberg, Deputy Undersecretary for Policy, U.S Department of Defence.