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"content": "disciplined soldiers who have been respected around the world for many decades. You will agree with me that one of the greatest honor for a nation is for it to be recognized by the rest of the family of nations as a country which can support the purposes for which the multilateral and the global community of nations exist. I say so because Kenya, being a member of the UN, in sending its troops for many years to support peace keepers under the auspices of the UN, it is assisting in the fulfillment of the purposes of the UN which are articulated in Article1 of the UN Charter. These purposes include the maintenance of international peace and security. Therefore, Mr. Speaker, Sir, it is a great honor for our country to have performed so well and even to continue receiving requests from the UN. I think this is something that we should be proud of as a nation and hope that, going forward, we can maintain this leadership, not only in this region, but also globally. Mr. Speaker, Sir, in 2005, Kenya played a critical role mid-wifing the peace process between the Sudan and South Sudan. The following year, 2005/2006, the peace agreement was signed here in Nairobi. I take this opportunity to thank the many Kenyans that tirelessly got involved in this process including Gen.Rtd. Sumbeiyo who was the Special Envoy to President Daniel Moi during that time, Hon. Kalonzo Musyoka who was the Minister for Foreign Affairs and so on. There are so many Kenyans who did a great job. At the same time, just before the peace process in Sudan was entered into, the United Nations Security Council, which is a superior organ of the United Nations in the area of maintenance of international peace and security, passed Resolution No.1590, in December, 2005 to create the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNAMIS). The following year, 2006, Kenya was requested to send troops to UNAMIS. That was done and at that time there was no requirement for parliamentary approval because we were under the old Constitution but we are happy the country complied with that request. From 2006, 690 Kenyan troops have been involved in peace operations in Sudan. When South Sudan got independence on 9th July, 2011, the UNAMIS was converted with UNAMISS, that is, the United Nations Mission in South Sudan. The contingency remained the same at 690. The country entered into a memorandum of understanding between Kenya and the United Nations. It was agreed that the contingent be retained at 690. As we know due to realities of battle, the memorandum of understanding provides that every year, there should be a possibility of rotating personnel but within the 690 so that if people are unwell they can be replaced by other people who are feeling better. Mr. Speaker, Sir, that has been going on for some time now. Fast forward to 15th December, 2013, allow me to commend my brother, the Leader of Minority and Senator for Bungoma County, Sen. Wetangula because when Kenya did the actual deployments of the 690 soldiers to UNAMIS, my brother was then Kenya’s Minister for Foreign Affairs and he did well for the country. I really applaud him because a country without a clear forceful foreign minister and a foreign policy is a country that is going nowhere. Let me illustrate what I mean by this: As we speak what the Ministry of Defence is requesting through the National Security Council is not a new deployment. It is actually The electronic version of the Senate Hansard Report is for information purposes only. A certified version of this Report can be obtained from the Hansard Editor, Senate."
}