On Tuesday, a senior Ministry of Foreign Affairs official told The Nation — a top Kenyan newspaper — that the nation had declined a request from Ukrainian President Zelenskyy to address the nation’s parliament. With other diplomatic channels available, “why would they want to address the Kenyan Parliament, for instance?” an official is reported to have asked.
The official reported that Kenya, particularly due to its status as an African representative on the UN Security Council, does not want to appear to be taking sides in the conflict, since it hopes “to see an end to the war.” The official explained: “We have made principled decisions which we took from an African position. We are there [at the UN] as Africa representatives.”
The African Union has condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while opposing the heavy sanctions imposed on Russia.
