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　　Kerry traveled from Nairobi to Mogadishu, becoming the first sitting U.S. secretary of state to visit Somalia. He spent about 3? hours in the capital, a visit that was not publicly announced in advance.

　　Speaking at the airport, Kerry said he was impressed with the country's progress toward peace and stability.

　　"I visited Somalia today because your country is turning around. Three years have passed since a provisional constitution was adopted and a parliament sworn in," Kerry said.

　　Kerry Makes Historic Trip to Somalia in Show of Support

　　He also noted² that, with help from AMISOM, the African Union peacekeeping mission, "Somali forces have pushed al-Shabab [extremists] out of major population centers. A determined³ international effort has put virtually all of Somali pirates out of business."

　　Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Prime Minister Omar Abdirashid Ali Sharmarke greeted Kerry at the airport.

　　The U.S. envoy⁴ later met with regional leaders of Somalia's federal states and representatives of civil society groups.

　　'Progress has been made'

　　"?Great progress has been made and you have all contributed to that progress," Kerry told the regional leaders.

　　Somalian Foreign Minister Abdisalam Hadliye Omer told VOA's Somali service the visit "shows the world that Somalia government is functioning and that Somalia has turned around and is open for business."

　　The top U.S. diplomat⁵ thanked regional countries for contributing troops to the AU Mission to Somalia, and applauded Somali leaders for working toward the country's "Vision 2016" goals, which include elections.

　　"The government is also working toward finalizing⁶ the constitution and holding democratic elections in 2016," Kerry said. "You, all of you, must have a voice in this process. Your leaders affirmed to me today that they are committed to making progress."

　　Kerry met separately with civil society members, including Somali peace activist⁷ Fartuun Adan, a 2013 international "Women of Courage" award recipient⁸, as well as Ilwad Elman and Khadija Isse, a former and a current member of President Barack Obama's Young African Leaders Initiative.

　　The United States remains⁹ the No. 1 financial donor¹⁰ to the AU force as well as the Somali government, which, after years of limited power, is slowly exerting its authority across Somalia.

　　Somalia's foreign minister also told VOA that Kerry and Somali officials  discussed reopening a U.S. embassy in Mogadishu.

　　Kerry indicated much the same in his remarks.

　　"In recognition of the progress made and the promise to come, I am pleased to announce that the United States will begin the process of establishing premises¹¹ for a diplomatic mission in Mogadishu," he said. "We are upgrading our diplomatic representation."

　　Currently, U.S. diplomats¹² dealing¹³ with Somalia operate out of Kenya’s capital, Nairobi.

　　As part of his regional tour, Kerry earlier this week visited Kenya to discuss counterterrorism efforts. The country is contributing troops to the African Union peacekeeping mission and it also hosts hundreds of thousands of Somalis at its refugee camps.

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