Somali Prime Minister meets U.S. Deputy Secretary of State

Washington D.C- Somali Prime Minister, Hassan Ali Khaire has held a meeting on Wednesday with the U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, John Sullivan in Washington D.C. The two leaders discussed the bilateral relations between the two countries and U.S. support for Somalia.
“I met with US Deputy Secretary of State, John Sullivan where we discussed ways of further strengthening the partnership between the two countries and U.S. support for Somalia’s development,” Khaire said in a Twitter post.
Sullivan affirmed that his country is committed to supporting Somalia’s security and rebuilding process.



“Today, Deputy Secretary John Sullivan met with @SomaliPM Hassan Ali Khayre to reaffirm the enduring U.S.-Somalia partnership and discuss development, good governance, and efforts to counter-terrorism,” US Mission in Somalia posted on their twitter account.

There has been a dramatic uptick in U.S. airstrikes targeting Al-Shabaab in recent weeks, and more noticeably this past year.
Since President Trump entered the White House, the drone strikes have more than doubled from 14 in 2016 to at least 34 in 2017.
Last November, U.S. boots on the ground officially increased from 50 to 500. American commanders say they want to prevent Somalia from becoming a hub for  groups like Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabaab and ISIS.
The meeting comes on the heel of United States’ pledge to give more than $533 million in humanitarian aid for victims of conflicts and drought in Somalia and several other countries in the continent.
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson made the announcement at a speech in Virginia before departing for a week-long trip to several African countries.
Prime minister, Khaire has been in Washington since Sunday to participate in the World Bank’s annual Fragility Forum.