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Türkiye's ruling party has dismissed a series of inflammatory social media posts by Uganda's top military commander, who demanded $1 billion in compensation and a Turkish bride from Ankara before threatening to sever diplomatic ties entirely, calling the remarks groundless and demanding a public correction.
Omar Celik, spokesman for the ruling AK Party, responded directly to the statements made by Uganda's Chief of Defence Forces, General Muhoozi Kainerugaba. "Türkiye has no problem with Uganda," Celik said. "We know that this person has made similarly baseless statements about other countries. That statement is wrong and must be corrected. We hope he speaks more carefully from now on." Kainerugaba subsequently deleted the posts on April 12.
Kainerugaba, who is also the son of President Yoweri Museveni, posted a series of escalating demands on X beginning April 11, threatening to end all diplomatic relations with Türkiye within 30 days and ban Turkish Airlines from Ugandan airspace.
He framed his central grievance as a financial one, arguing that Uganda deserved $1 billion from Ankara as a security dividend for its decades-long military presence in Somalia, where Ugandan troops have served under African Union missions combating the Al-Shabaab militant group since 2007.
Kainerugaba contended that Türkiye had benefited economically from infrastructure and commercial activity in Mogadishu while Uganda bore the human cost. In a separate post he added a personal demand, asking Ankara to deliver "the most beautiful woman in that country" as his wife. The remarks drew swift ridicule online before being deleted.
Türkiye has significantly expanded its diplomatic and economic presence in sub-Saharan Africa, opening embassies, investing in infrastructure, and expanding Turkish Airlines routes across the continent.
In Somalia specifically, Türkiye has operated a military training base outside Mogadishu since 2017 and has been involved in reconstruction projects. Kainerugaba argued that Türkiye had grown economically active in the region only after Uganda and other African Union troop-contributing countries had stabilized it through years of costly military operations against Al-Shabaab.
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This episode is not Kainerugaba's first diplomatic controversy. In 2022, he drew a formal apology from his father's government after threatening that Uganda's army could capture Nairobi in under two weeks, straining Uganda-Kenya relations. That same year he made headlines by offering 100 Ankole cattle as a bride price for Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, threatening to "capture Rome" if refused.
Museveni was compelled to formally apologize to Kenya and temporarily suspend his son. Kainerugaba has also pledged to deploy 100,000 Ugandan soldiers to protect what he called the "Holy Land" in relation to the Israel-Gaza conflict.
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