President Ruto Holds Talks With US Secretary of State Antony Blinken

On Sunday, July 30, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with President William Ruto to discuss their shared priorities. 

Among the issues they discussed were ending the conflict in Sudan and advancing talks led by the East African Community on the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo. President Ruto had previously urged Sudan's warring generals to stop the violence in the country. However, one of the Sudanese conflict groups has refused to accept Ruto as a mediator, leaving his role in ending the 100-day conflict unclear. The conflict has resulted in hundreds of deaths and the displacement of more than one million people.

Blinken encouraged Ruto to engage in a peaceful and productive dialogue to address political disputes with the opposition. The IGAD Summit appointed Ruto as the chief negotiator on June 12, but he was turned down, and the Sudanese military requested President Salva Kiir of South Sudan instead.

"Spoke today with President @WilliamsRuto of Kenya to advance shared priorities, including ending the conflict in Sudan and advancing East African Community-led talks on eastern DRC," Blinken stated in a tweet. 

The generals, who were once allies, orchestrated a military coup in 2021 that derailed a transition to civilian rule. Tensions between them have been increasing due to disagreements about the integration of the Rapid Support Forces into the army and who should oversee the process. Last week, General Yasir Alatta of the Sudan Armed Forces challenged Kenya to intervene in the crisis after President Ruto suggested sending East African peacekeeping troops to Sudan. General Yasir Alatta, the Assistant Commander-in-Chief of the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF), has accused Ruto of being a mercenary for an undisclosed foreign country.