Gen. Townsend visits East Africa and Angola to advance mutual security interests

The trip provided U.S. Africa Command leaders the opportunity to meet with civilian and military leaders in each nation to underscore the importance of partnership to confronting regional threats and achieving shared security goals.

By U.S. Africa Command Public Affairs , United States Africa Command Stuttgart, Germany May 23, 2022

View Gallery

Gallery contains 2 images

Photo 1 of 2

Gen. Townsend visits East Africa and Angola to advance mutual security interests

Gen. Stephen Townsend’s final stop on the trip was to Rwanda, where he and U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to Rwanda Deb MacLean met with Rwandan President Paul Kagame. Townsend expressed appreciation for Rwanda’s long-standing partnership with the United States, to include the long-standing cooperation with the state partnership program between Rwanda and the Nebraska National Guard, as a demonstration of Rwanda’s vision for a stable, security and prosperous Africa.

Download image

Photo by: U.S. Embassy in Rwanda

Photo 2 of 2

Gen. Townsend visits East Africa and Angola to advance mutual security interests

In Kenya, Gen. Stephen Townsend, commander, U.S. Africa Command, and U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to Kenya Eric W. Kneedler met with Kenyan President Uruhu Kenyatta to discuss mutual security concerns and to express appreciation to Kenya for its continued leadership and collaboration on regional security. Townsend and Kneedler also participated in a pass and review at the Kenyan Defense Force Headquarters.

Download image

Photo by: U.S. Embassy in Kenya

U. S. Army Gen. Stephen Townsend, commander, U.S. Africa Command, accompanied by Command Senior Enlisted Leader, U.S. Marine Corps Sgt. Maj. Richard Thresher, wrapped up a multi-country trip to the East Africa region and Angola, May 11-20.

During his travels, he visited civilian and military leaders in Djibouti, Somalia, Kenya, Rwanda, and Angola. The trip provided U.S. Africa Command leaders the opportunity to meet with civilian and military leaders in each nation to underscore the importance of partnership to confronting regional threats and achieving shared security goals.

The first stop of the trip was in Hargeisa, Somalialand, where Townsend and U.S. Ambassador to Somalia Larry E. André, Jr. Hearne met with Muse Bihi Abdi, President of Somaliland to discuss expanded and enriched partnership.

Townsend also traveled to Berbera and Moghadishu, where he met with Somalia Chief of Defense Forces Brig. Gen. Odawa Yusuf Rage and African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) Force Commander, Lt. Gen. Diomede Ndegeya. Townsend also conducted a routine battlefield circulation and recognized joint service members at Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti.

In Djibouti, Townsend presided over the Combined Joint Task Force - Horn of Africa (CJTF-HOA) change of command ceremony where Maj. Gen. Bill Zana passed responsibility to Maj. Gen. Jami Shawley.

“I came to Djibouti, the only permanent U.S. base in Africa, to change command of CJTF-Horn of Africa from one great leader to another," Townsend said. "Stability and security in East Africa is an important U.S. national security interest and no one has been more dedicated to that than Maj. Gen Bill Zana. Bill's leadership at CJTF-HOA, has been instrumental in achieving U.S. objectives in East Africa and maintaining our superb, long-term relationship with our Djiboutian partners. I'm optimistic for the future as Maj. Gen. Jami Shawley assumes command of CJTF-HOA. I know she will continue our mission to maintain pressure on terrorists and other malign actors in this region and continue to engage with our African and international partners who are so critical to our collective success."

In Kenya, Townsend and U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to Kenya Eric W. Kneedler met with Kenyan President Uruhu Kenyatta to discuss mutual security concerns and to express appreciation to Kenya for its continued leadership and collaboration on regional security. Townsend and Kneedler also participated in a pass and review at the Kenyan Defense Force Headquarters.

Townsend then traveled to Angola where he accompanied U.S. Ambassador to Angola Tulinabo S. Mushingi during a meeting with Angolan President João Lourenço. This marked Townsend’s first trip to Angola, which signed an agreement five years ago with the U.S. to deepen defense cooperation. During his visit, the leaders’ conversations sharpened focus on mutual security concerns, and Townsend expressed appreciation for the opportunity to find additional ways to strengthen the relationship with Angola.

Townsend’s final stop on the trip was to Rwanda, where he and U.S. Chargé d’Affaires to Rwanda Deb MacLean met with Rwandan President Paul Kagame. Townsend expressed appreciation for Rwanda’s long-standing partnership with the United States, to include the long-standing cooperation with the state partnership program between Rwanda and the Nebraska National Guard, as a demonstration of Rwanda’s vision for a stable, security and prosperous Africa.

U.S. Forces Strike ISIS-Somalia

AFRICOM Commander Visits Kenya

AFRICOM Commander Visits Somalia to Strengthen Partnership

AFRICOM Commander visits Somalia

USAFRICOM Commander and Senior Enlisted Leader visit Kenya, Somalia and Djibouti

Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord

NAIROBI, Kenya – Among the flurry of tactical live fires and squad movement drills, air ground integration and even the humanitarian initiatives at exercise Justified Accord 2025 (JA25), lies the one thing those who serve in any armed force must follow: The Law. The Law of Armed Conflict, or LOAC, is a key aspect of training for any military. JA25’s academics course aimed at learning from the international legal lessons of previous wars in an effort to reduce the amount of human suffering in future conflicts. “The soldier’s rules are a broad set of rules that we have pulled from the large breadth of international law,” said U.S. Army Maj. Tim Olliges, an operational law attorney assigned to U.S. Army Southern European Task Force, Africa (SETAF-AF), the lead U.S. Army command and planner of JA25. “The LOAC is extensive and can be complex, so we pull out the ten most critical concepts that every soldier, right down to the private, should know before they go into combat.”

US, Kenya prepare for the unimaginable CBRN threat

NAIROBI, Kenya – Imagine two scenarios. Scenario 1: Dawn breaks over the capital of Kenya. A U.S. diplomat leaves his residence for the embassy. After a 20-minute ride, his car arrives at the gate and he enters. He sits in his office to begin the day when, all of a sudden, he hears an explosion through the open window. It seems far off; it is not a large explosion. He thinks maybe it was just a car accident, but minutes later he smells something bitter in the air. His eyes water, sirens blare and a U.S. Marine Corps security detail enters his office wearing gas masks. They put a mask on him and tell him they must evacuate immediately because a deadly chemical is blowing over the compound. Scenario 2: U.S. intelligence receives credible information that radiological material is being loaded onto a ship in the Kenyan port city of Mombasa. Time is short and no one knows which ship, only that it will embark soon, possibly bound for the hands of violent extremists or other state actors looking to imperil the U.S. homeland. There is no time to send U.S. security forces to intercept the package. Instead, the Kenyan Disaster Response Battalion (DRB) mobilizes and arrives at the port. Using tactics and tools gained from years of training with the United States, they find the ship and the weapon, placed there by a violent extremist organization, and prevent its departure, defeating the threat to America and its citizens. Similar scenarios have happened before in other areas of the world.

36th Annual International Military Chiefs of Chaplains Conference and First Chaplain Africa Forum held in Brussels

The U.S. European Command (EUCOM) and Belgian Ministry of Defence, in partnership with U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) and U.S. Indo Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) Chaplain Directorates, hosted the world’s largest annual meeting of senior military religious leaders at the 36th Annual NATO & Partner International Military Chiefs of Chaplains Conference (IMCCC) in Brussels, Belgium, January 27-31, 2025.

Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord

US, Kenya prepare for the unimaginable CBRN threat

36th Annual International Military Chiefs of Chaplains Conference and First Chaplain Africa Forum held in Brussels

Army lawyers provide training on rules for armed conflict at exercise Justified Accord

US, Kenya prepare for the unimaginable CBRN threat

36th Annual International Military Chiefs of Chaplains Conference and First Chaplain Africa Forum held in Brussels