Prime Cabinet Secretary Musalia Mudavadi has stepped in to cool the growing friction between Kenya and Uganda after President Yoweri Museveni made remarks suggesting Uganda should have control over the Indian Ocean a comment that has raised eyebrows on both sides of the border.
Addressing MPs on Wednesday, November 19, Mudavadi reassured the country that Kenya’s relationship with Uganda remains stable. He reminded the House that Kenya has always valued peaceful neighbourly relations and intends to keep it that way.
He explained that international law already provides a clear framework for how landlocked countries like Uganda can access the sea. Kenya, he said, has always respected those rules and will continue supporting its neighbours in the spirit of regional cooperation.
“I want to assure you that we are not going to war,” he said calmly. “Kenya has always offered safe and free passage for goods from landlocked countries. That will not change. It’s our obligation, and it’s also part of how our ports continue to grow.”
Some MPs had voiced concern for their safety ahead of a planned trip to Uganda for interparliamentary sports games. Mudavadi moved quickly to ease their fears.
“I want to assure members of parliament that they will be safe when they go to Uganda,” he said, noting that the government has already taken steps to ensure their security.
The tension began earlier in the month when President Museveni suggested that Uganda’s limited access to the sea could one day lead to conflict. Speaking on November 8, he questioned why Uganda should depend so heavily on Kenya to reach the Indian Ocean and went as far as claiming that the ocean “belonged” to him.
“Some countries have no access to the sea not just for economic reasons but for defence,” Museveni said. “We keep having discussions with Kenya the railway, the pipeline. But that ocean belongs to me. I am entitled to that ocean. In the future, we are going to have wars.”
Mudavadi, however, made it clear that Kenya isn’t interested in any kind of confrontation. Instead, the country remains committed to dialogue, cooperation, and maintaining stability in the region even when political statements threaten to overshadow years of partnership.
