Uganda’s Gen Muhoozi Threatens US Ambassador Over Museveni Remarks: “Apologize or Leave”
Uganda’s first son and military chief, Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, has demanded that America’s ambassador, William Popp, either apologize to President Museveni or leave Uganda, heightening diplomatic tensions between the two nations.
In a previous post on X, Gen Muhoozi cited “disrespecting our beloved and celebrated president and undermining the constitution of Uganda” as the justification for his stance.
He stated on Friday, October 4, “If this current US ambassador does not apologize to mzee (Museveni) personally by Monday morning (9:00 am) for his undiplomatic behavior in our country, we will demand he leaves Uganda.”
In a series of posts, the first son implied that the US has been increasingly critical of Museveni’s 38-year-old National Resistance Movement (NRM) government, which came to power in 1986.
Gen Muhoozi remarked, “We have no problem with the USA. As I have said many times, it is a country we love and admire. But lately, we have a lot of evidence that they have been working against the NRM government.”
He added, “If ANYBODY is STUPID enough to attack us here in our country, I can only promise them hell, destruction, and defeat!! Afghanistan would look like a nice picnic compared to our resistance. Our fathers showed us the way; sacrifice is better than slavery.”
By the time of this report, the US had not yet issued an official response to Gen Muhoozi’s controversial statements, which followed just a week after the US imposed sanctions on four former high-ranking officers in Uganda’s armed forces.
A source from the US Mission informed the East African, “We are trying to analyze the situation.”
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On October 2, the US Department of State announced actions against police officials Bob Kagarura, Alex Mwine, Elly Womanya, and Hamdani Twesigye for their involvement in severe human rights violations.
Previously, the US had sanctioned several prominent Ugandan officials, including former deputy military chief Lt Gen Peter Elwelu, parliament speaker Anita Among, and minister Amos Lugoloobi, along with their families.
The Department highlighted that Elwelu was blacklisted due to “extrajudicial killings committed by members of the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF),” while the others were targeted for alleged corruption.
Other significant Ugandan figures facing US sanctions include former police chief Gen Kale Kayihura, ex-spy chief Maj-Gen Abel Kandiho, Uganda Prisons chief Johnson Byabashaija, and football federation president Moses Magogo, who is married to the speaker.
Museveni accepted Popp’s credentials in September 2023, officially recognizing him as Washington’s diplomatic representative to Uganda and the head of the US mission.
Despite recent veiled criticisms by Museveni toward the West, Uganda and the USA have maintained relatively positive diplomatic relations for over 60 years.
According to international law outlined in Article 9 of the Vienna Convention, diplomatic missions operate under certain regulations. This law allows the receiving state (in this instance, Uganda) to declare a member of diplomatic staff from the sending state (the USA) as persona non grata at any time, without needing to justify its decision.
Uganda’s Gen Muhoozi Threatens US Ambassador Over Museveni Remarks: “Apologize or Leave”
