President Museveni meets Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi at the Mayuge State Lodge to discuss bilateral cooperation amid diplomatic tension over Indian Ocean remarks (Photo/PPU)
State House sources said the discussions centred on bilateral cooperation and regional stability, coming days after Mr Museveni questioned Kenya’s exclusive claim to its Indian Ocean coastline, remarks that generated unease across East Africa.
Mayuge, Uganda: President Museveni Wednesday held a closed-door meeting with Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, after his recent comments on the Indian Ocean sparked diplomatic concern in Nairobi.
State House sources said the discussions at the Mayuge State Lodge centred on bilateral cooperation and regional stability, coming days after Museveni questioned Kenya’s exclusive claim to its Indian Ocean coastline, remarks that generated unease across East Africa.
Earlier on Wednesday, Mudavadi appeared before Kenya’s National Assembly plenary, where he downplayed the concern around Museveni’s comments, insisting that relations between the two neighbours remained strong and rooted in international law.
Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary, H.E Musalia Mudavadi, and his team visited me at State Lodge Mayuge last night. We discussed issues concerning both our countries and the region. I welcome him. pic.twitter.com/WSy0MaTd1q
Mudavadi told legislators that Kenya has always provided safe and free passage for goods from landlocked countries and would not deviate from its obligations.
“I want to assure you that we are not going to go to war, and we as a country have always provided safe passage for goods from landlocked countries,” he said. “We are not about to change that because it is our international obligation, but also how we grow our ports.”
Kenyan lawmakers also demanded assurance of their safety ahead of their scheduled travel to Uganda for interparliamentary sports activities. Mudavadi confirmed that the Kenyan government had taken all necessary steps to guarantee the safety of its parliamentary delegation. “I want to assure the Members of Parliament that they will be safe when they go to Uganda,” he noted.
Diplomatic attention heightened after Museveni, while addressing supporters on November 8, questioned why Uganda should depend solely on Kenya for sea access and warned of future conflict if such challenges persisted.
“That ocean belongs to me. Because it is my ocean. I am entitled to that ocean. In the future, we are going to have wars,” Museveni said, referring to persistent disagreements over transport corridors like the Standard Gauge Railway and the crude oil pipeline.
He added that it was ‘madness’ for countries to block landlocked nations from accessing the ocean. “In Uganda, even if you want to build a navy, how can you build it? We don’t have access to the sea. The political organisation in Africa is so irrational. Some of the countries have no access to the sea, and you are stuck.
However, the Kenyan government downplayed the Ugandan President’s war threat over access to the Indian Ocean.
Addressing the media on November 12, Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei said Kenya believes that Museveni understands sovereignty, territorial boundaries, and natural resources.
“I will not comment much on what President Museveni said with respect to our oceans, but I believe very much that he does have a fairly great understanding of our territory and the nature of our rights with respect to our natural resources and his rights with respect to natural resources within Ugandan territory,” said PS Sing’Oei.
But with the meeting in Mayuge, observers view it as a strategic attempt to ease tension, reaffirm regional commitments, and steady relations between the two countries ahead of ongoing cross-border projects.
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Mayuge, Uganda: President Museveni Wednesday held a closed-door meeting with Kenya’s Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, after his recent comments on the Indian Ocean sparked diplomatic concern in Nairobi.
State House sources said the discussions at the Mayuge State Lodge centred on bilateral cooperation and regional stability, coming days after Museveni questioned Kenya’s exclusive claim to its Indian Ocean coastline, remarks that generated unease across East Africa.
Earlier on Wednesday, Mudavadi appeared before Kenya’s National Assembly plenary, where he downplayed the concern around Museveni’s comments, insisting that relations between the two neighbours remained strong and rooted in international law.
Mudavadi told legislators that Kenya has always provided safe and free passage for goods from landlocked countries and would not deviate from its obligations.
“I want to assure you that we are not going to go to war, and we as a country have always provided safe passage for goods from landlocked countries,” he said. “We are not about to change that because it is our international obligation, but also how we grow our ports.”
Kenyan lawmakers also demanded assurance of their safety ahead of their scheduled travel to Uganda for interparliamentary sports activities. Mudavadi confirmed that the Kenyan government had taken all necessary steps to guarantee the safety of its parliamentary delegation. “I want to assure the Members of Parliament that they will be safe when they go to Uganda,” he noted.
Diplomatic attention heightened after Museveni, while addressing supporters on November 8, questioned why Uganda should depend solely on Kenya for sea access and warned of future conflict if such challenges persisted.
“That ocean belongs to me. Because it is my ocean. I am entitled to that ocean. In the future, we are going to have wars,” Museveni said, referring to persistent disagreements over transport corridors like the Standard Gauge Railway and the crude oil pipeline.
He added that it was ‘madness’ for countries to block landlocked nations from accessing the ocean. “In Uganda, even if you want to build a navy, how can you build it? We don’t have access to the sea. The political organisation in Africa is so irrational. Some of the countries have no access to the sea, and you are stuck.
However, the Kenyan government downplayed the Ugandan President’s war threat over access to the Indian Ocean.
Addressing the media on November 12, Foreign Affairs Principal Secretary Korir Sing’Oei said Kenya believes that Museveni understands sovereignty, territorial boundaries, and natural resources.
“I will not comment much on what President Museveni said with respect to our oceans, but I believe very much that he does have a fairly great understanding of our territory and the nature of our rights with respect to our natural resources and his rights with respect to natural resources within Ugandan territory,” said PS Sing’Oei.
But with the meeting in Mayuge, observers view it as a strategic attempt to ease tension, reaffirm regional commitments, and steady relations between the two countries ahead of ongoing cross-border projects.
Related
If you would like your article/opinion to be published on Uganda’s most authoritative news platform, send your submission on: [email protected]. You can also follow DailyExpress on WhatsApp and on Twitter (X) for realtime updates.