The West African nation, Beninhas been considered a key partner in the mission of security multinational company aimed at helping Haiti to combat the violent bands criminals. Benin promised to contribute the greatest force individual, between 1,500 and 2,000 soldiers, who would also be the only native speakers of the French in the operation.
However, deployment plans now appear to be on hold. The debate centers on who would have control over the Beninese troops once they are in Haitiand whether the international effort to stabilize and secure the country ahead of the elections should be led by police either military.
“Our position and commitment remain the same: to help Haiti“said the chancellor of BeninShegun Adjadi Bakari, in an interview with the Miami Herald.
The participation of Beninwhere it is spoken French just like in Haitiis considered essential for the success of the mission. Concerns about rules of combat were recently raised during a briefing with States Joined.
“But from the beginning… we clearly stated that what Haiti need is not a mission of police. We believe that in Haiti one is needed mission military to fight gangs, restore security in the country and restore stability, which is a prerequisite for any election,” said Adjadi Bakari.
The participation of Beninwhere the population speaks French Like many Haitians, she is considered key to the success of the mission. His concerns about rules of combat They emerged recently in a briefing with congressional foreign affairs staff.
Congressional staff have been concerned about the withdrawal of resources by the Biden administration from tense areas of the world to put out fires in other areas.
Benin initially offered to join the mission multinational support security in February, since the Community of the Caribbean called for more French-speaking nations to join the effort after the United Nations agreed to deploy foreign forces to help the police Haitian national to dismantle bands armed forces that control a large part of the capital.
Kenya has volunteered to lead the efforts and has agreed to deploy 1,000 of its security agents. police. However, the effort was delayed due to legal problems in Nairobi and issues of financing in Washington. However, Washington has been able to assemble a list of countries willing to send troops to what has continually been presented as a mission of security directed by the police.
These countries include Bahamas, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, BeninChad, Jamaica, and more recently, Guatemala.
Of them, the Kenyans were the first to deploy. The first contingent of the 400 police Kenyans began arriving at the end of June. On Thursday, they were joined by 25 staff members from security Caribbean, including members of the force Jamaican military and police, and two members of the Belizean army
Bakari stated that Benin have several concerns regarding the missionwhich the government communicated to its partners from the beginning. Among these concerns is the command structure, which was expressed when Benin offered to contribute between 1,500 and 2,000 military.
“They came back to us and asked if we were ready to send our military now. We said, yes. But you cannot ask the military that are directed by the police“, said.
He added: “It hasn’t happened anywhere in the world. You need the military manage the military. This is where we are today, we said: We cannot send our military to Haiti to be directed by police of Kenya“, he expressed
It is not the first time that the question of who is best equipped to deal with the bands armed in Haiti.
A confidential UN document, obtained by the Herald before Kenya was committed to leading the effort, he suggested that the force navy international could be a combination of units military and police, but I needed to have the forcethe resources and intelligence capabilities to combat the bands heavily armed dedicated to kidnappings.
Bakari said that Benin had raised this same idea in their discussions, suggesting that the mission of security was a combination of military and police or exclusively military.
“We all know that it is impossible for the police solve this problem,” he said. “They don’t know how to carry out these types of operations; It’s pure war, we know it.”
It raised another concern, which also contributed to Canada’s decision not to take the lead despite strong American pressure. “They also have to understand us: how can I send my people to Haiti if they will be attacked? What will I say to my voters?” Bakari told the Miami Herald.
While some in Washington They see the uncertainty that surrounds Benin as a setback to the efforts of States Joined to sufficiently ensure Haiti For next year’s long-awaited general elections, Bakari remains optimistic that his nation can maintain its commitment to the Caribbean country, which shares not only the language French but also other cultural traits.
He mentioned that a diplomatic meeting with the Secretary of State Anthony Blinken is scheduled for the end of this month, where Benin plans to reiterate its concerns.
The States Joined They are the largest taxpayer financial to the mission multinational support security led by Kenyaproviding more than $300 million for its operations and the construction of a base near Port-au-Prince International Airport.
Despite this generosity, there are still not enough funds to support the staff of security who is expected to participate in the operation. There is also growing concern about the financing of the background trust administered by the UN. Although the financing current, which includes 84.5 million dollars in this background trustis sufficient to support the currently deployed contingents, the funds are expected to run out early next year.
