Why Trump is at war with General Muhoozi

Uganda’s military chief, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba accused the US Embassy in Kampala of assisting Bobi Wine’s escape during the January 16, 2026 operation. [Agencies]

A social media post by Uganda’s military chief targeting the family of a leading opposition figure has triggered a severe diplomatic rebuke from a senior United States senator, threatening a shift in security partnership between the two countries.

General Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the Chief of Defence Forces of the Uganda People’s Defence Forces (UPDF) and son of President Yoweri Museveni, posted a photograph on his X account on the night of Thursday, January 29, 2026.

The image showed Barbie Itungo Kyagulanyi, the wife of opposition leader Robert Kyagulanyi, popularly known as Bobi Wine, surrounded by armed security personnel.

The post implied she had been captured during a military and police raid on the Kyagulanyi home on January 16, 2026.

In subsequent posts in the early hours of Friday, January 30, General Muhoozi, who also serves as the Senior Presidential Advisor for Special Operations, escalated his rhetoric. He directly accused the United States Embassy in Kampala of assisting Bobi Wine’s escape during the January 16 operation.

“Fellow Ugandans, because of the present situation where an opposition leader kidnapped himself and is missing and according to our best intelligence did all this with the coordination with the current administration at the US embassy in our country, we the UPDF suspend all cooperation with the current administration at the US embassy Kampala.” wrote the General, further adding, “The very precious security cooperation between Uganda and the United States has been undermined for a decade now by unimaginative bureaucrats at the embassy.”

Hours later, Muhoozi realised his gaffe and issued an apology. “I want to apologise to our great friends, the United States, for my earlier tweets that I have now deleted. I was being fed wrong information. I have spoken with the U.S. Ambassador to our country, and everything is okay. We are going to continue our military cooperation as usual.”

The response from Washington was swift. Senator Jim Risch , the Ranking Member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, issued a strongly worded statement on January 30, 2026.

“General Muhoozi Kainerugaba has crossed a red line,” Senator Risch stated. “Targeting the family of a political opponent and levelling baseless, dangerous accusations against US diplomatic personnel is unacceptable.” 

The senator’s statement promised consequences: “Now the US must reevaluate its security partnership, which includes sanctions and military cooperation with Uganda.” He emphasized that deleting the posts was insufficient, stating:

“The president’s son, and likely successor, cannot just delete tweets and issue hollow apologies. The US will not tolerate this level of instability and recklessness.”

Senator Jim Risch is a strong voice in US foreign policy. His position on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee gives him direct influence over foreign aid, diplomatic nominations, and international security agreements.

He has been a consistent critic of the Museveni government’s democratic backsliding and human rights record, particularly following the passage of Uganda’s Anti-Homosexuality Act in 2023.

General Muhoozi, who was promoted to the role of Chief of Defence Forces in 2024, is widely viewed to being groomed to succeed his father, Yoweri Museveni, who has held power since 1986. He often writes inflammatory social media posts which have long been a source of both domestic controversy and diplomatic friction. His past tweets have even drawn official complaints from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) in Kenya

The US is a major donor to Uganda. According to the US Department of State’s Integrated Country Strategy for Uganda, American assistance exceeds $950 million annually, primarily for health programmes, but also including security aid. 

However, this partnership has been under strain.

Following the violent 2021 elections and the enactment of the Anti-Homosexuality Act, the US government imposed visa restrictions on Ugandan officials and removed Uganda from the African Growth and Opportunity Act (AGOA) trade preference programme in December 2023, citing “gross violations of internationally recognized human rights.”

General Muhoozi’s latest allegations against US diplomatic staff stirs the waters of international diplomatic engagements. The US Embassy in Kampala has not publicly commented on the specific tweets. 

Recently, due to growing tensions over governance and human rights, the United States imposed visa restrictions on officials and individuals from several African nations, including Uganda.

In October 2022, then Lt. Gen. Muhoozi, the Commander of the Land Forces, sparked a regional crisis by repeatedly tweeting: “It would take us, my army and me, two weeks to capture Nairobi. After we capture Nairobi, where should I live? Westlands? Riverside?” The posts forced Kenya to summon Uganda’s ambassador for an explanation.

Shortly after this incident, President Museveni promoted his son to the position of Chief of Defence Forces (CDF), the highest-ranking position in the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF), where  Museveni explained his unconventional approach to handling mistakes by senior officers thus:

“When an officer makes a mistake… don’t take his command away… Promote him to a bigger position so that he gets more work and gets exhausted.” 

In August 16, 2022, Muhoozi mocked President Ruto’s election, stating, “My only problem with my beloved brother @WilliamsRuto is that he defeated my dear sister @MarthaKarua! I cannot forgive him for that!” 

In April 2022 and May 2023, General Muhoozi tweeted: “The world has not seen a greater patriot than Putin. I have just finished watching his speech.”

This endorsement of the Russian President, whose forces had recently invaded Ukraine, drew sharp criticism.