U.S.-Kenya High-Level Meeting on the Need to Adopt the Gang Suppression Force in Haiti

The United States welcomes the outcomes of today’s high-level event on Haiti during the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Week, where Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau and Kenyan President Ruto joined international partners to address the urgent security crisis in Haiti.

This meeting underscored the international commitment to establishing a UN Support Office for Haiti (UNSOH) and transitioning the Multinational Security Support (MSS) mission to a scaled-up Gang Suppression Force (GSF). Through a strengthened new mandate, called for by all 32 Member States of the Organization of American States, the UNSOH would better support the 5,500 forces needed to restore security necessary for the return to elected governance. Deputy Secretary Landau emphasized the importance of this mission, commending the brave leadership of Kenya and other contributors to the MSS mission, whose efforts have laid the groundwork for this next phase. The time for decisive, coordinated action is now.

Solutions must be Haitian-led and internationally supported. We call on all UN member states to contribute to this effort. The GSF and UNSOH would provide tools needed to address Haiti’s immediate security challenges, but enduring recovery depends on Haitian leadership. Haiti must write its own future and work toward building a stable nation.

The United States stands united with the Haitian people and our international partners in this critical endeavor. Again, the time for action is now.