“As part of their regional study trip, student officers from the Burundi National Defense Forces Senior Command & Staff College make a visit to the Ministry of Defense and Veteran Affairs Headquarters,” stated UPDF spokesman Brig. Gen. Felix Kulayigye.
Burundi belongs to the East African Community, which also includes Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda, South Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).
Uganda and Burundi have friendly ties on a variety of fronts, including the military.
Burundi’s President, Evariste Ndayishimiye, attended President Yoweri Museveni’s inauguration in May of last year and then paid a two-day visit to Uganda.
Ndayishimiye, who was joined by Burundi’s First Lady, Angeline Ndayishimiye, said that Burundi regards President Yoweri Museveni as a father figure because of his vital involvement in the country’s peace and reconciliation effort.
“Burundi will never forget how you gave yourself up in 2015, sacrificed yourself, and traveled to Burundi by road when other nations were fleeing Burundi believing there was a conflict.”
It was a sacrifice for which we are grateful. We come to seek your blessing as our elder. When our former President Nkurunziza died, we went through a difficult period.
He was supposed to be my advisor, but he died. “It is now up to you to advise us,” Ndayishimiye stated last year during a visit to Uganda.
“We have come to inform you about the situation in our nation.” We have security and tranquility, and we are grateful for your support.
We will need a combined commission meeting in the future to work together as brothers and sisters. “With your help, we will defeat poverty in Burundi,” he continued.
Museveni, on his part, said, “We’ve known each other for a long time.” Burundians came here from Kigoma Boha before Europeans to search for employment, and some remained.
I am overjoyed that there is now peace in Burundi and that reconciliation is taking place. What we must do is address the economy. A joint permanent commission is the best way to go through things in depth. “We can also work together on security issues,” he remarked.
