Highlight 6/2026: Military Power and National Security in Kenya
Arnold Ateka, 16 February 2026
The Kenyan military (Kenya Defence Forces; KDF) plays a key role in the country’s national security architecture, reflecting both constitutional design and evolving threat dynamics in the region. Established under Article 241 of the 2010 Constitution, the KDF comprises the Kenya Army, Kenya Navy, and Kenya Air Force, which operate under explicit civilian oversight. Its primary mandate is the defense of Kenya’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. However, in practice, its role has expanded to encompass counterterrorism, regional stabilization, and provide support to civil authorities during internal security crises. This evolution reflects a broader shift in the nature of contemporary security threats, particularly the emergence of non-state armed actors such as Al-Shabaab.
The KDF’s operational profile demonstrates a dual orientation: external defense and internal security support. Regionally, Kenya has been a key contributor to peace enforcement and stabilization efforts in Somalia, initially through the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) and subsequently under the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS). These deployments underscore Kenya’s strategic national security interest in preventing cross-border terrorism and maintaining regional stability within the Horn of Africa. Domestically, the KDF has been deployed in support roles to address banditry in the North Rift and to respond to emergencies, operating alongside the National Police Service. While constitutionally framed as assistance to civil authorities, such internal deployments raise important questions regarding the militarization of internal security and the long-term implications for civil-military relations.
Kenya’s experience with military intervention in politics is historically limited but significant. The failed 1982 coup attempt, led by elements of the Kenya Air Force under Captain Hezekiah Ochuka of the Kenya Airforce wing, marked a critical juncture in civil-military relations. The swift suppression of the coup by loyal Army units and the subsequent disbandment and restructuring of the Air Force reflected a deliberate effort to reassert centralized control and prevent future insubordination.
Since then, Kenya has not experienced a successful military coup, distinguishing it from several other states in the region. Institutional reforms, professionalization, and the entrenchment of constitutional civilian oversight have contributed to a relatively stable pattern of military subordination to elected authority. Contemporary political rhetoric that characterizes mass protests as “coup attempts” must therefore be analytically distinguished from actual military-led seizures of power, which involve coercive control by security forces rather than civilian dissent.
International cooperation constitutes another defining feature of the KDF’s operational environment within the context of national security. Kenya maintains close security partnerships with the United States, the United Kingdom, and multilateral bodies such as INTERPOL and AFRIPOL. The establishment of the Joint Terrorism Task Force–Kenya (JTTF-K) in 2021, supported by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Department of State, illustrates the institutionalization of intelligence-sharing and joint investigative frameworks in response to transnational terrorism. Training, logistical assistance, and intelligence collaboration enhance Kenya’s counterterrorism capacity, particularly in the aftermath of high-profile attacks such as the 2019 DusitD2 incident whereby the US FBI CIA/MI6 supported Rapid Response Teams with Kenya’s National Intelligence Service. At the same time, these partnerships embed Kenya within broader global counterterrorism regimes, potentially shaping operational priorities and national security governance norms.
The KDF represents a case of a professionalized military operating within a constitutional democratic framework while confronting complex hybrid threats. Its trajectory reflects a balancing act between internal stability, regional engagement, and external partnerships. The durability of civilian control, combined with expanding security cooperation and modernization initiatives, will remain central to Kenya’s national security strategy in an increasingly volatile regional environment.
Arnold Ateka, Highlight 6/2026: Military Power and National Security in Kenya, 16 February 2026, available at www.meig.ch
The views expressed in the MEIG Highlights are personal to the authors and neither reflect the positions of the MEIG Programme nor those of the University of Geneva.