Blinken says US intends to provide $200M for Haiti multinational security support mission

By Jennifer Hansler, CNN

Rio de Janeiro (CNN) — US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Thursday announced the US intends to provide $200 million to the multinational security support mission in Haiti.

Blinken said that funding will go to support the Haitian national police “with planning, with intelligence, with airlift capacity, communications, and medical equipment and services.”

“We urge the international community to join us by contributing funding, contributing personnel, contributing equipment, contributing logistics, contributing training, to this mission,” he said at an event on the sidelines of the G20 Foreign Ministerial meeting in Rio de Janeiro.

Blinken called the situation in Haiti “one of the most urgent challenges we face as an international community.”

He said gangs control 80% of Port au Prince, and that they are using sexual assault and rape “to terrorize the population.”

“Half the country is eating just one meal a day. Three million children need immediate humanitarian aid,” Blinken said, noting the conflict “is spreading north to the country’s breadbasket.”

He noted the US has provided “more than $300 million for food, for clean water, for health care and other humanitarian aid over the last three years.”

Blinken said the US had allocated $189 million since July 2021 to help “vet, train, and professionalize the national police.” He also noted the US has imposed sanctions and visa restrictions.

“But we know this support alone is not enough – not enough for Haitians to take back their country,” the top US diplomat said. “We need to do more to help the Haitian National Police stabilize the security situation now so that aid can actually flow in effectively” and Haiti can return to the democratic path.

He said he believes the “best way” to stabilize the situation is with the UN-authorized multinational security support mission.

“The success of the mission depends on securing the international contributions that it needs,” Blinken said.

He thanked Kenya’s government for its willingness to serve as the lead nation in that mission.

According to the State Department, “Canada, Benin, France, Germany, and Jamaica announced financial, personnel, and in-kind commitments to the mission during this event.”

“The United Nations established a Trust Fund for this mission that is able to receive additional contributions,” the State Department said.

Blinken reiterated that the US “continues to call for the restoration of democratic order.”

“We urge Prime Minister Henri and all the key stakeholders to come together around broader-based governance,” he said.

“The only legitimate path to long term peace and stability is through free and fair elections.”

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