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The planned visit of US Vice President JD Vance to Kenya has been abruptly cancelled, a direct result of an order issued by President Donald Trump stopping American officials from attending the upcoming G20 summit in South Africa.
The cancellation was confirmed by Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi, who stated that the move stemmed from the President’s directive blocking American government officials from attending the Johannesburg summit, scheduled for November 22nd and 23rd.
The Vice President's visit to Nairobi was set to be the first to an African nation by a high-ranking official since the Trump administration took power in January.
File image of U.S. Vice President JD Vance
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The Kenyan Foreign Affairs CS quickly moved to reassure the public that the cancellation would not negatively impact the strategic relations between Washington and Nairobi.
Vice President Vance was initially scheduled to lead a US delegation to Kenya immediately following the conclusion of the two-day gathering of the world’s most advanced economies.
However, the order has made him a "casualty" of his boss's contentious foreign policy stance.
Trump’s Stance on South Africa
The directive is rooted in President Trump’s long-standing and sharp criticism of the South African government, which he has accused of mistreating white farmers.
The President has repeatedly used the term "white genocide" to describe the alleged killings of these farmers, and his administration has already granted refugee status to at least 60 individuals, with orders to expedite the process for others.
During a contentious meeting with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa in May, President Trump reportedly displayed images of the alleged killings.
File image of presidents Cyril Ramaphosa (South Africa) and Donald Trump (U.S.)
However, news reports noted that these images were misleading, as they were later found to originate from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and not South Africa.
Despite this diplomatic hurdle and previous trade disputes over tariffs, official ties between the two nations are said to remain steady.
For now, the anticipated visit by the US Vice President has been postponed indefinitely, a victim of the White House’s increasingly unpredictable foreign policy.