Wamuzi News Ke
President William Ruto’s growing ties with China have triggered alarm bells in Washington, placing Kenya’s allegiance to the United States under intense scrutiny.
Just a year after being honored as a major non-NATO ally, Kenya is now at the center of a geopolitical firestorm. Speaking boldly at Peking University in Beijing, Ruto didn’t hold back.
He blasted the current global system as “broken and obsolete,” and declared Kenya and China as architects of a radical new world order rooted in equity, inclusion, and sustainability.
His remarks have been hailed in Beijing but in D.C., they’ve sparked fears of a diplomatic earthquake.”Kenya and China are not just partners we are co-creators of a fairer future,” Ruto proclaimed, underscoring his commitment to China’s global ambitions.
His visit marked the first by an African leader to China this year a move he claims balances his planned 2024 trip to the U.S., the first of its kind by an African president in 15 years.
However, on Capitol Hill, U.S. lawmakers were not celebrating. A high-stakes Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing titled “East Africa and the Horn: At a Turning Point or Breaking Point?” revealed growing unease over Ruto’s alignment with Beijing.Committee chair Senator James Risch didn’t mince words: “This isn’t just trade.
This is loyalty to a rival power. It’s reckless to lean on leaders who openly side with Beijing. We must rethink our relationship with Kenya.”Experts echoed his sentiments.
Joshua Meservey of the Hudson Institute painted a grim picture: “President Ruto’s Beijing visit wasn’t just symbolic it was strategic. He’s supporting China’s push to upend U.S. dominance.”
Meanwhile, Ruto’s ruling party, the UDA, is reportedly deepening its ties with the Chinese Communist Party, raising even more eyebrows among U.S. policymakers.
As if that weren’t enough, Ruto’s past embrace of Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi despite Iran’s history of hostility toward Kenya was cited as further evidence of shifting loyalties.
“Ruto welcomed Iran as a ‘strategic partner’ even as Iran backs terror threats against his own people,” Meservey told the committee, leaving senators stunned.
Amid all this, a Chinese trade delegation met with Ruto at State House to boost Kenyan tea exports yet another sign of strengthening China-Kenya economic relations while the U.S. watches from the sidelines.
Michelle Gavin of the Council on Foreign Relations added to the chorus of concern: “We’ve built ties with Ruto, but ignored the Kenyan public. They’re demanding anti-corruption reforms.
We’ve missed a critical moment to connect with the people.”With strategic interests in the region especially in counter-terrorism and maritime trade routes U.S. senators are now urgently calling for a pivot.
The consensus: stop overrelying on political figures and start empowering democratic institutions and Africa’s booming youth population.
As Ruto repositions Kenya on the global chessboard, the question echoing through Washington is clear: Has America just lost a key ally in Africa?
