Kenya, Ethiopia Agree on Joint Military Operations to Secure Moyale-Marsabit-Turkana Corridor and LAPSSET

Kenya and Ethiopia have agreed to strengthen coordination along the Moyale-Marsabit-Turkana corridor to address rising cross-border threats, as part of renewed efforts to operationalise their Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA).

The deal is expected to see the Kenya Defence Forces (KDF) and the Ethiopian National Defence Force undertake structured joint military operations aimed at securing key assets and stabilising vulnerable border zones that the two jointly share.

Renewed focus on joint operations and infrastructure protection follows high-level bilateral talks between Defence Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya and Ethiopia’s Minister of Defence, Engineer Aisha Mohamed Musa, held on the margins of the 130th anniversary commemoration of the historic Battle of Adwa in Addis Ababa.

The two countries also outlined measures to enhance the protection of strategic infrastructure, including the LAPSSET Corridor, against emerging and asymmetric threats.

The corridor, a flagship regional integration project, has increasingly become a critical economic lifeline whose security is viewed as central to trade, energy transport, and regional connectivity.

At the centre of the discussions was the implementation of the existing Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) between Kenya and Ethiopia.

The two sides agreed to adopt a phased and practical framework to fast-track outcomes of the inaugural Joint Defence Committee, with a focus on actionable security collaboration rather than commitments.

Security along the Moyale-Marsabit-Turkana corridor has remained a shared concern due to cross-border syndicate networks, resource-based conflicts, and the movement of insurgent groups.  

Additionally, border security has suffered in recent months due to standoffs and conflicts between the Turkana community of Kenya and the Dassanech and Nyangatom communities of Ethiopia.

These clashes, concentrated around the Ilemi Triangle and Lake Turkana, are driven by disputes over resources such as pasture, water, and fishing grounds.

Meanwhile, CS Tuya and her Ethiopian counterpart also reaffirmed a commitment to stabilisation efforts in Somalia under the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission (AUSSOM) to enhance security in the Horn of Africa.

Present at the bilateral meeting were Galma Boru, Kenya’s Ambassador to Ethiopia and Permanent Representative to the African Union; Major General Frederick Leuria, Assistant Chief of Defence Forces (KDF) in charge of Operations, Plans, Doctrine and Training; and senior defence officials from both countries.