In Summary
Kenya's President Uhuru Kenyatta made brief visits to Uganda and
Rwanda on Monday amid long-running disputes between the two countries
that has now threatened cross-border trade.
Mr Kenyatta
held private talks, first, with Rwanda's President Paul Kagame before
addressing the
country's national leadership retreat in Gabiro, where he emphasised on the importance of integration.
country's national leadership retreat in Gabiro, where he emphasised on the importance of integration.
His next stop, before his return trip to Nairobi, was at State House in Entebbe where he met President Yoweri Museveni.
President
Kenyatta's visit comes on the back of Mr Kagame's two-day trip to
Tanzania, seen as a quest to firm up relations with Dar es Salaam and
secure a trade route from the sea.
Rwanda, a small
landlocked country, is served by two major transport corridors — the
Central Corridor that runs from Dar es Salaam through Tanzania’s
heartland, and the Northern Corridor that runs from Mombasa through
Kenya and Uganda.
About 80 percent of Rwanda’s import
cargo is handled through the Dar port, but its major exports — minerals,
tea and coffee — go through Uganda to the port of Mombasa.
However, souring of relations between Kigali and Kampala have
been simmering for years now, and worsened late last month when Rwanda
closed the Gatuna border post, its busiest.
Integration
In
Gabiro, President Kenyatta said Kenya's relationship with Rwanda "is
probably the best" adding that: "The more we meet, the more we interact,
the better we integrate as a people."
He urged for more engagement among the citizens of the two countries.
"As
governments, we have been able to achieve so much. We have made it
easier for our people and goods to move across our borders. We have
created linkages in ICTs and in other areas," Mr Kenyatta said.
While
acknowledging existing challenges within the East African Community
member states, he called on leaders to work together to resolve them.
"It
is true that we are faced with some challenges as neighbours and as a
region. Through goodwill and good intentions, we will be able to resolve
these challenges," he said.
President Kagame said Mr Kenyatta was a true friend of Rwanda.
"You
know you can have a brother who is not your friend. In President
Kenyatta, I have a brother who is also a friend," Mr Kagame said.
In
Uganda, Presidents Museveni and Kenyatta discussed bilateral and
regional issues, according to a statement from State House Entebbe.
-Additional reporting by Ivan R. Mugisha.
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