Wednesday October 1, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at a rally. He recently questioned Washington’s continued military involvement in Somalia and Kenya, calling instead for American forces to focus on what he described as an “invasion from within.” (File photo / AP)
Mogadishu (HOL) — U.S. President Donald Trump questioned the need for American military operations in Somalia and Kenya, telling senior military officials to focus on what he called an “invasion from within” at home.
Speaking Tuesday at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Virginia, Trump said decades of foreign deployments had diverted troops from domestic security. “For years, politicians assumed our job was to police the far reaches of Kenya and Somalia while America itself faces an invasion,” he said, without identifying the threat. He added that the adversary is harder to detect “because they don’t wear uniforms.”
Trump said he would deploy federal forces to additional U.S. cities as part of a shift in priorities. He did not say whether that approach would change missions in East Africa.
It is not yet clear whether the remarks will affect U.S. counterterrorism operations against al-Shabab in Somalia and along the Kenya–Somalia border. U.S. Africa Command in recent months has reported airstrikes and partnered operations with Somali and Kenyan forces aimed at degrading the group’s capacity.
Somalia has long been a central focus of U.S. security engagement in the Horn of Africa. Over the past decade, Washington has committed roughly $3 billion in security assistance, training, equipment, and partner operations with Somali forces.
After a period of near-withdrawal under the first Trump administration, the Biden administration reestablished a small but persistent U.S. presence in 2022, largely in advisory and counterterror roles. The U.S. supports Somalia’s elite Danab Brigade, a special operations unit trained and equipped with U.S. assistance, and in 2024 signed an agreement to build up to five new military bases for the Somali National Army to strengthen capacity against al-Shabab.
Kenya, a long-time U.S. security partner, was designated a major non-NATO ally in May 2024 during President William Ruto’s visit to Washington, expanding access to training, equipment and financing. The United States also supports Kenya through a 2023–2028 defence cooperation framework and maintains a presence at Manda Bay, a hub for regional operations.
Fourteen months after the designation, the Trump administration has launched a review following a proposal by Congressman James Risch to amend the 2026 National Defense Authorization Act. Any change could reshape U.S. commitments in the Horn of Africa.
The United States has kept a limited but strategic footprint in Somalia and Kenya, providing airpower, intelligence and training to partner forces against the al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab. A reassessment in Washington could influence those missions and broader stability efforts across the region.