US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visits Haiti to show support for multinational mission

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Haiti last Thursday to reinforce the U.S. government’s commitment to a multinational mission aimed at curbing gang violence in the Caribbean nation.

His visit also emphasized the push for long-delayed general elections, alongside the potential consideration of a peacekeeping operation to maintain security. Kenyan police, numbering around 400, have been deployed to Haiti as part of a United Nations-backed mission to suppress the escalating gang violence in the capital, Port-au-Prince, and beyond. However, concerns have arisen about the mission’s capacity to handle the situation due to a lack of resources.

“At this critical moment, we do need more funding, we do need more personnel to sustain and carry out the objectives of this mission,” Blinken stated during a press briefing. He added that the U.S. is working to ensure the mission’s renewal while exploring all options for sustainability. “A peacekeeping operation would be one such option,” he said.