Kenya confirmed its first case of coronavirus on Friday. As that news hit the country and Horn of Africa region, information from Nairobi confirmed that President Farmaajo’s impending visit to the East African country was off.
The tripartite summit was to feature President Uhuru Kenyatta, President Mohamed Farmaajo, and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed of Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia respectively.
Kenya’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a letter saying that the much-anticipated meeting would now not take place. The meeting was to be the culmination of the visit to Mogadishu and Addis Ababa by a Kenyan delegation led by Cabinet Secretary Interior Fred Matiang’i.
Relations between Kenya and Somalia have deteriorated in the recent past. First, Somalia accused Kenya of meddling in its domestic affairs. Kenya hit back by saying that Somalia was insincere and only using these allegations to score political points at home.
The letter cancelling the meeting said, “It is not possible to have the meeting between Kenya, Somalia, and Ethiopia. For this reason, we have to cancel the meeting that was scheduled for Monday March 16, 2020 in Nairobi.”
