Return of the red dragon: Kenya forced to face East amid looming Western aid cuts

Liu Jieyi (3rd L), spokesperson for the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), attends a press conference at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 3, 2025, ahead of the country's annual legislative meetings known as the "Two Sessions". [AFP]

As the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe signal a pullback in foreign aid, Kenya is increasingly looking to China for support.

This shift suggests a potential realignment in Kenya’s diplomatic and economic strategies, experts say.

Kenya has been a strong ally of the US as well as China under successive administrations, although President William Ruto is seen as leaning more to the West, having entered into several bilateral agreements with the previous Joe Biden administration, which are now at risk following the return of Donald Trump to the White House last year.