Florida U.S. Senator Marco Rubio says sending U.S. troops to Haiti is not the key to stabilizing the chaotic situation in the Caribbean country.
The 53-year-old Republican is President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for U.S. Secretary of State. During a confirmation hearing on Wednesday, Rubio told his fellow U.S. Senators that there is no easy answer in Haiti, where violence by armed gangs continues unabated.
"You've got to establish some baseline security, and it's not gonna come from a U.S. military intervention. So to the extent that we can encourage foreign partners — and I would include foreign partners in the Western hemisphere who should be contributing to this effort — to provide some level of stability and security in Haiti, so that you can explore the opportunities to have a transitional government that has legitimacy."
Kenya is currently leading a multi-national mission to help Haiti.
The United Nations Human Rights Office reports that gang violence left about 5,600 people dead in Haiti last year alone and has driven at least one million people from their homes.
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