Burundi–United States relations

Burundi–United States relations are the international relations between Burundi and the United States.

Burundi – United States relations

Burundi

United States

History

In 1962, the United States established diplomatic relations with Burundi when it gained its independence from Belgium. Following independence, the country experienced political assassinations, ethnic violence, and cyclical periods of armed conflict; several governments were installed through coups. The 2000 Arusha Peace and Reconciliation Agreement provided a negotiated settlement framework that, along with later ceasefire agreements, led to the end of the 1993-2006 civil war. President Pierre Nkurunziza's decision to seek a third presidential term in 2015 sparked protests in the capital and was followed by a failed coup d’état. The resultant violence and political and economic crises resulted in massive refugee flows to neighboring countries. The United States supports the achievement of long-term stability and prosperity in Burundi through broad, inclusive reconciliation; humanitarian assistance; economic growth; and the promotion of political openness and expansion of democratic freedoms. The United States supports the East African Community (EAC)-facilitated Burundian dialogue and other conflict resolution efforts within Burundi. The United States seeks to facilitate Burundi's deeper integration into regional and international markets, as a means to promote sustainable economic development.[1]

Official U.S. Government goals in Burundi are "to help the people of Burundi realize a just and lasting peace based upon democratic principles and sustainable economic development." The United States encourages political stability, ongoing democratic reforms, political openness, respect for human rights, and economic development in Burundi. In the long term, the United States seeks to strengthen the process of internal reconciliation and democratization within all the states of the region to promote a stable, democratic community of nations that will work toward mutual social, economic, and security interests on the continent.

In 2011, the US sent a military aid package worth $45 million to Burundi and Uganda, which included four drone aircraft.[2]

Relations severely deteriorated in 2015 when Nkurunziza ran and won for a third term and Burundi faced sanctions by Barack Obama[3] and under the Donald Trump administration, threatens to close its embassy in Bujumbura.

Principal U.S. officials

  • Ambassador – Anne S. Casper, August 2016 – May 2019 (currently vacant)

Diplomatic missions

The U.S. Embassy is located in Bujumbura. The Embassy of the Republic of Burundi to the United States is in Washington, which Donald Trump threatens to close if Nkurunziza supports Russia.[4]

gollark: My Psi research lab with mk1 coffee machine, inside just one block.
gollark: They are very cool.
gollark: My current power generation can only support frequent use of high-efficiency spatial IO frames of less than 16x16x16 lest all power cut out and my base be plunged into eternal darkness from which it can never escape.
gollark: One of my long-term plans is to make a design allowing me to just automatically churn out compact machines filled with fusion reactors which work.
gollark: No need to bring lithium into this.

See also

References

  1. "Policy & History".
  2. Bruno de Paiva (2011-07-06). "Uganda and Burundi to Fight Islamists with US Drones". Future Directions International. Archived from the original on 2014-02-28.
  3. "How the West Lost Burundi".
  4. http://www.burundiembassydc-usa.org/. Missing or empty |title= (help)

https://bi.usembassy.gov/our-relationship/policy-history/  This article incorporates public domain material from the United States Department of State website https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2821.htm.

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