Why we should not overplay threat of terrorism

Romanian-American political scientist and military strategist Edward Luttwak once stated that, “We live in fortunate times in which we have only the irritant of terrorism instead of world wars to worry about.”

Luttwak is renowned for his work advising governments across the world on their most pressing issues.

He is also a frequent commentator on world affairs and has published books theorising about war and strategy.

While what he says about terrorism seems somewhat abrasive, if not downright insensitive, there is some logic to it.

Over the past decade, Kenya has been on the front lines of terrorism more than almost any other country in the world. The recent uptick in attacks by militants at and within our borders seems to be occurring with worrying frequency.

Last year began with the attack at the DusitD2 hotel in Nairobi, and this year with the Al-Shabaab attack on the US naval base near Manda airport in Lamu. More attacks have followed around Lamu and in Garissa. But as terrorists increase their aggression, we cannot let them defeat us or bring down our spirit.

Kenya is leading the fight against extremism through AMISOM, the African Union Mission to Somalia, working to rebuild our neighbouring nation after so many years of hardship and civil war.

Our leadership knows that instability spreads, and that instability and violence in Somalia will inevitably spread to Kenya. Better to fight it there than here.

Al-Shabaab targets us because both our close proximity and their need to blame someone makes it easy. But their attacks are minor in comparison to the might of the KDF, and our military is exceeding expectations.

As the Commander in Chief of the Kenya Defence Forces, President Kenyatta makes our men and women in uniform the government’s main priority. Each recruit honours his or her nation, and we are lucky to have so many eager and courageous troops fighting for our security.

Terrorism is an egregious form of aggression, one beyond the norms of regular warfare. No one understands this better than President Uhuru Kenyatta. It is a fight that needs to be fought, but not one that needs to dominate our entire lives. We need not live in fear of our safety, because Kenya is stable.

International allies are amongst the first to recognise this. While the threat of terrorism should not be belittled, it also does not need to be blown out of proportion, especially as Uhuru fights to eradicate it.

We enjoy very good relations with almost every country in Africa, as well as respect from powerful nations in Asia, Europe and North America.

Kenya’s international standing can be considered at its highest ever. And if a world war were to break out, we would surely be mediators, or entirely neutral.

But no country would choose to pick a fight with us, and we have no interest in taking part in violence.

That is why following the President’s recent visit to Washington to meet with his American peer President Trump, an agreement was struck between Kenya and the FBI to launch its first Overseas Joint Terrorism Task Force.

Kenyan security officials will be sent to the United States to train with their US counterparts. Following completion of the course, they will return to Kenya where they will continue to work with and share intelligence with American security officials.

The government is doing everything that he can to keep terrorism at bay. We cannot have militants purposefully seeking out civilians for their attacks, killing innocent people.

It is critical that we continue to lead our lives as usual while at the same time remaining cognisant of the effort that our brave troops put in to let us live our day to day lives.

Thankfully, when it comes to larger conflicts like those between the EU and UK, or between the US and China, modern states generally seek to reach compromise through diplomatic means.

But just a few weeks ago it seemed as though the US and Iran were on the brink of war.

But as a neutral and independent nation, Kenya will only work with foreign partners to advance mutual goals to the benefit of the citizens of both countries. Never before has peace felt so strong.