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{
    "id": 1224053,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/1224053/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 202,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Sen. M. Kajwang’",
    "speaker_title": "",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 13162,
        "legal_name": "Moses Otieno Kajwang'",
        "slug": "moses-otieno-kajwang"
    },
    "content": "Mr. Speaker, Sir, as the Committee looks into this matter, I would also like to urge them to look into Kenya's foreign policy. The last time Kenya had a formal foreign policy was 2014. Since then, there have been many shifts in geopolitics. The centre of the world is moving slowly from the Global West towards China and India. Africa is rising. We have the Africa Free Continental Trade Area. Could the relevant Committee also question the Ministry of Foreign and Diaspora Affairs on our current foreign policy and why it has not been updated to take stock of changes in global affairs? When we established the Committee on Security and Foreign Relations in this Senate, we had a big fight with the National Assembly. They thought that the Senate had nothing to do with matters of foreign policy. In fact, when we travel to other capitals and pay a visit to Ambassadors in those countries, sometimes we are not treated well. It is because the Ambassadors feel that the Senate does not appropriate money for their upkeep and maintenance of their facilities. So, they do not treat Members of the Senate as well as they treat Members of the National Assembly. This Senate is part of Parliament. Parliament has got a responsibility to have a say on behalf of the people on the country's foreign policy and the manner in which the country is going to engage with other countries. Diplomacy and war are the languages that states use to talk to each other. Mr. Speaker, Sir, I am very proud of you. This past one week, we have had the Russia-Africa Parliamentary Conference, which this House has previously participated in. I have had the privilege of accompanying the Speaker of this House to Moscow for a similar function four years ago. However, since the war between Russia and Ukraine broke out, Kenya's foreign policy has not been very clear. The fact that you are not attending that conference tells us that you are not condoning and you are not standing with the Russians in their aggression towards the Ukrainians. It tells us that we are standing with the people of Ukraine. If you watch Al Jazeera and the Cable News Network (CNN) as we speak, so many African Heads of States, African Speakers and African Members of Parliament are in Russia. I have been there and I know how they wine and dine African delegations. On day one, you are taken to the Tolstoy Theatre. It is golden and one of the most mesmerizing facilities you will ever see in your life. By the end of your four or five days delegation visit - and in between shots of vodka and ‘ mamushkas ’, who happen to be the ladies in Russia – it is very difficult to disagree with Russia on anything. Nevertheless, we must be guided by foreign policy. Mr. Speaker, Sir, just to cut it short, let this committee compel the national executive to update our foreign policy and to bring it in line with current geopolitical circumstances."
}