Why U.S. Vice President cancelled his planned visit to Kenya

The U.S Vice President was to visit Kenya after the G20 Summit in South Africa.

The government has announced the cancellation of U.S. Vice President JD Vance’s planned visit to Nairobi later this month.

In a statement issued on Monday by Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs CS Musalia Mudavadi, the government said it had been notified by Washington of the change in plans.

According to the statement seen by The Standard, the cancellation follows President Donald Trump’s directive barring American officials from attending the upcoming G20 Summit in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Vice President Vance was scheduled to lead the summit before visiting Kenya.

Mudavadi reaffirmed Kenya’s commitment to its long-standing strategic partnership with the United States, citing ongoing collaboration in trade, investment, security, education, health, and diaspora affairs.

He expressed confidence that the development would not affect the strong and enduring relations between Nairobi and Washington.

"The Government remains confident that this development will not affect the strong and enduring ties between our two nations," Mudavadi noted. 

Last week, Trump announced that the US would not attend the G20 summit in South Africa over widely discredited claims that white people are being persecuted in the country.

He said it was a "total disgrace" that South Africa is hosting the meeting, where leaders from the world's largest economies will gather in Johannesburg later this month.