We will play by international rules, but our views must be respected. That seemed to be the message from President Uhuru Kenyatta as he addressed his first international function last week.

Barely a week into office, President Kenyatta used his first “multilateral engagement,” the official opening of the 24th session of the UN-Habitat Governing Council, to lay out the template for the conduct of his government’s foreign policy, going forward.

“We will continue to be a strong partner in the understanding that true multilateralism — founded on mutual respect for each country’s views and political processes — is the only lasting way we can successfully solve the common challenges we all face,” said President Kenyatta during the function at the UN Office at Gigiri, Nairobi.

“…my government will abide by the rules of international co-operation and will act as a champion of the principle of sovereign equality among all members, in the expectation that this will be reciprocated.”

Choices with consequences

Indicted together with his deputy William Ruto at the Hague, Netherlands-based International Criminal Court (ICC) for crimes related to the post-poll chaos that rocked Kenya in 2008, Mr Kenyatta’s eventual assumption of office has presented a moral dilemma to the West and international bodies like the UN and thrown the conduct of their diplomatic relations with Kenya into a tailspin.

In the run-up to the March 4 election, most Western powers had shown discomfort with the Jubilee duo’s ambitions.

READ: Will Kenya’s Western allies abandon strategic interest?

Johnnie Carson, who was then the top US diplomat to Africa and has since retired, entered the fray with his now famous “choices have consequences” statement, while his EU counterparts were more forthcoming: they would maintain only what they called “essential contact” with the ICC pair should they carry the ballot.

Former UN Secretary general Kofi Annan, who successfully led the negotiations that secured peace for Kenya and midwifed the Mwai Kibaki-Raila Odinga-led Grand Coalition government of 2008-2012, had also weighed in with sentiments whose import was to discourage Kenyans from countenancing the ICC indictees as their president and deputy president, respectively.

But in what must be a major diplomatic coup for President Uhuru’s fledgling government, the hardline rhetoric, especially from the West, seems to have abated considerably.

This was noticeable after the Jubilee win was validated by a Supreme Court decision on March 30, which also dismissed a petition by their rivals, former prime minister, Raila Odinga and former vice president Kalonzo Musyoka of the CORD (Coalition for Reforms and Democracy) alliance.

READ: Uhuru sworn in as president

From previously guarded statements congratulating Kenyans on a peaceful election, the Western diplomats formed a beeline to pay courtesy calls on the newly elected president and his deputy.

Besides the Supreme Court upholding their win in a decision that was also accepted by their rivals, the Jubilee duo have two things still going for them.

First, they have so far adhered to the demands of the ICC. Second, Kenya remains of strategic importance to the West. There is the possibility that some of the initial “essential contact” talk may be jettisoned for a more pragmatic approach if Western interests are deemed to be under threat in the region.

Essential contact

“Essential contact does not mean a total freeze on contacts. As long as the duo continues to co-operate with the ICC, the West and institutions like the UN will continue to engage Kenya. Kenya is too important an ally to be ignored. In the emerging diplomatic configuration of the continent, Kenya is the undisputed regional lynchpin,” said Prof Maria Nzomo, head of the Institute of Diplomacy and International Studies, University of Nairobi.

The former diplomat cited Kenya’s “resoluteness” in the fight against Al Shabaab and regional trade as two areas in which Kenya is a key partner of the West.

“He is basically saying that in as much as we need each other, you can no longer dictate to us. We have other friends like Brics (Brazil, India, China and South Africa), who are ready to do business. He is also building on a new regional and African assertiveness. You heard the EAC anthem being sung at a national function for the first time. That is powerful symbolism,” added Prof Nzomo.

According to Prof David Kikaya of the United States International University (USIU) in Nairobi, the ICC duo, their handlers and Kenyans need to be wary of the rider on co-operation with the court.

“Clearly, contact is conditional. Otherwise they risk being lumped together with Sudanese President Omar al Bashir. In the meantime, the president and his deputy shall be accorded due protocol. In any case, they are still suspects,” said the professor of international relations.

Kenya’s geostrategic position in Africa, its attractiveness to Western transnationals as a launch pad into Africa; its role as the only UN station in the developing world and close military co-operation with the West are among factors that add to its states as a much-sought-after ally, he argued.

Even then, having ICC indictees as president and deputy president may mean more awkward moments in Kenya’s diplomatic relations with the West and UN.

The EastAfrican has learnt that President Kenyatta’s participation at last week’s UN-Habitat meeting happened after the UN Nairobi Office sought and secured the direct authorisation of Secretary-General Ban Ki moon.

In the same week, the UN published rules guiding contact between its officials and ICC indictees.

The rules allow contact “without restrictions” with individuals summoned to appear before the ICC. But such contact is conditional upon the suspects’ co-operation with the court.