Kenya: Tillerson cancels Saturday events over illness

By Andrew Wasike and Magdalene Mukami

NAIROBI, Kenya (AA) – Kenya Saturday confirmed that U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has called off all or most of the day’s events due to illness.

"Tillerson is unwell, but in good condition, and he may resume his activities this afternoon or tomorrow," a Foreign Ministry source told Anadolu Agency.

“The government is doing everything to ensure that his trip goes smoothly,” added the source, who asked not to be named due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

Earlier Saturday, U.S. Undersecretary of State Steve Goldstein said that Tillerson was ill but that it was nothing serious.

"The secretary is not feeling well after a long couple days working on major issues back home such as North Korea," which is set for an unprecedented summit with the U.S., said the spokesman.

Tillerson jetted into the East African country on Friday where he held talks with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga, who announced a truce on the eve of his visit.

According to a diary issued earlier by the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi, Tillerson had been scheduled to see the work of a U.S. program to fight HIV/AIDS in Africa and to speak to adolescent girls, as well as visit the site of the 1998 U.S. Embassy bombing.

Kenya is Tillerson's third stop on his five-day African tour.