Senate hearing urges integrated U.S. strategy for East Africa and the Horn of Africa

The Senate Foreign Relations Committee heard testimony urging a more integrated U.S. strategy for East Africa and the Horn of Africa, with witnesses calling for commercial engagement, stronger institutions and a coordinated Red Sea approach.

The committee’s witnesses said the region’s strategic importance — shipping lanes through the Red Sea, submarine cables and bases such as Djibouti — makes U.S. attention essential. Joshua Mazurvi, senior fellow at the Hudson Institute, told the panel, "East Africa is important to the prosperity and safety of Americans." Ambassador Michelle Gavin of the Council on Foreign Relations said the United States needs to "develop and pursue a Red Sea regional strategy."

Why it matters: Committee members and witnesses said continuing instability in Ethiopia, Sudan, Somalia and elsewhere creates openings for violent extremist groups and enables strategic competitors to deepen influence. That, they said, raises risks to U.S. national security and commercial interests.

Witnesses recommended a multi-part approach. Mazurvi urged a country-focused framework that concentrates limited U.S. resources on partners with baseline competence and strategic importance. He called for commercial engagement to be central to policy and for faster staffing of senior Africa-focused positions at the State Department and National Security Council. Gavin emphasized prioritizing conflict prevention and avoiding overreliance on personal relationships with individual leaders.

Committee members voiced concern about the diplomatic and operational gaps created by recent cuts to aid and public diplomacy programs and by understaffed embassies. Several senators argued that U.S. policy should shift from leader-focused ties to institution-building, support for civil society and investments that create jobs for youth.

Witnesses also flagged the need to align diplomacy, development and security work across agencies so that policy toward the Red Sea, the Horn and the broader Middle East is coherent. Gavin noted long-standing work by the U.S. Institute of Peace on Red Sea architecture and said regional security mechanisms must account for competing external actors and local equities.

Discussion only: The hearing was a fact-finding and advisory exchange; no formal decisions or votes were taken by the committee during the session.

Looking ahead: Senators left the record open for additional material and asked witnesses to respond to follow-up questions submitted after the hearing.