President William Ruto with French President Emmanuel Macron during the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi.

Kenya’s 2010 Constitution places strong emphasis on the sovereignty of the people. On April 8, 2026, Kenya ratified a Defence Cooperation Agreement with France, granting French soldiers legal immunity from prosecution under Kenyan courts.

The pact, signed on October 29, 2025, by Defence Cabinet Secretary Soipan Tuya and French Ambassador Arnaud Suquet, adds French troops to an existing foreign military presence that already includes British and American forces.

The agreement comes at a time when several African nations are reassessing the role of foreign military partnerships.

Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger have each expelled French forces in recent years over sovereignty concerns.

Across the Sahel, a broader political movement continues to challenge long-standing foreign military influence on the continent.

Legal and international relations experts have raised concerns that Kenya’s ratification of the pact could weaken the constitutional foundations of national sovereignty.

Kenya’s 2010 Constitution places strong emphasis on the sovereignty of the people, equality before the law, and national dignity.

Critics argue that granting broad legal protections to foreign troops risks creating the perception that Kenyan citizens are subject to a different standard of justice.

Civil society organisations have also voiced concern.

Many point to what they describe as a longstanding structural weakness in Kenya’s defence arrangements with foreign powers, particularly its military agreement with the United Kingdom.

Under the France agreement, French personnel will retain primary jurisdiction over crimes committed while on official duty.

In cases involving serious offences, French soldiers may be tried in French courts and serve any resulting sentences in France.

The arrangement closely mirrors protections granted to the British Army Training Unit Kenya (BATUK), which has operated in Nanyuki since the first Kenya-UK defence agreement was signed in June 1964, just six months after independence.

Over the decades, BATUK has been linked to allegations involving civilian deaths, sexual violence, and injuries caused by unexploded military ordnance left behind after training exercises.

One of the most prominent cases is that of Agnes Wanjiru, a 21-year-old woman who was murdered in 2012 and whose body was found in a septic tank in Nanyuki.

Despite an inquest concluding that she was killed by British soldiers, and reports of a suspect being arrested in the United Kingdom, her family is still waiting for justice.

For many observers, the Agnes Wanjiru case has become a powerful symbol of unresolved accountability gaps in Kenya’s defence partnerships.

Experts argue that it exposed structural weaknesses in agreements that appear to prioritise geopolitical alliances over effective justice mechanisms.

Extending similar protections to French soldiers, they argue, raises concerns about continuity rather than reform.

These concerns have emerged alongside France’s renewed diplomatic and economic engagement with Africa.

French President Emmanuel Macron hosted the Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi on May 11 and 12, 2026, announcing 23 billion euros in investment across energy, agriculture, and digital sectors.

He described the relationship as a “partnership of equals” aimed at resetting France’s ties with the African continent.

However, the summit attracted criticism from sections of the Kenyan public and pan-African commentators, many of whom argued that the language of partnership did not align with France’s historical and current record in Africa.

Some critics view the initiative as an effort to rebrand longstanding political influence as economic cooperation.

For many observers, the timing of the summit and the ratification of the military agreement appeared deeply significant.

France secured continued military access and legal protections for its personnel, while Kenya received major investment pledges without clear accountability conditions attached.

Beyond immediate concerns about immunity and sovereignty, analysts also warn that Kenya’s expanding military alignment with Western powers and Israel may carry longer-term geopolitical risks.

Experts argue that Kenya must be cautious not to appear overly aligned with any single geopolitical bloc.

Public sympathy in Kenya for Palestinians, alongside broader anti-imperialist sentiment across Africa, could intensify domestic scrutiny of such partnerships.

If Kenya is increasingly viewed as a strategic security partner of Western states and Israel, it may face internal political backlash as well as external diplomatic pressures.

Modern conflicts are no longer geographically isolated. Tensions involving the United States, Israel, and Iran have already produced global economic consequences.

Analysts warn that Kenya could face heightened terrorism risks, rising oil prices, disruption of trade routes through the Red Sea, and diplomatic strain with Muslim-majority states.

The central issue, however, is not whether Kenya should engage with Western countries or Israel.

Strategic partnerships are a normal feature of international relations.

The greater challenge is maintaining strategic autonomy.

Experts argue that defence agreements of this nature must be transparent, mutually beneficial, and subject to strong parliamentary and public oversight.

Hosting foreign troops, they say, should not become a permanent dependency.

It should remain a carefully managed, time-bound arrangement aligned clearly with Kenya’s national interests.

At a broader level, the France pact has renewed debate about institutional accountability in Kenya itself.

Questions persist over whether national institutions are sufficiently strong to negotiate, monitor, and enforce agreements that protect both sovereignty and justice.

As French soldiers prepare to arrive under the new agreement, the unresolved case of Agnes Wanjiru and six decades of unanswered questions surrounding BATUK remain a stark reminder of what can happen when accountability mechanisms fail.

For many Kenyans, her case has become more than an individual tragedy.

It stands as a lasting symbol of the human cost that can accompany foreign military presence when justice remains out of reach. The Star