By Katie Nguyen
NAIROBI (Reuters) - U.S. Secretary of State CondoleezzaRice arrived in Kenya on Monday to push talks to end thepost-election crisis but can expect a lukewarm welcome from thegovernment, bristling at Western pressure for a quick deal.
Rice, who was sent by President George W. Bush, is thehighest-ranking U.S. official to visit the country since aDecember 27 vote triggered ethnic clashes that killed 1,000people.
Bush says she will be bolstering efforts by former U.N.boss Kofi Annan to mediate a lasting political solution to oneof the darkest chapters in Kenya's post-independence history.
But on the eve of Rice's visit, Kenya's foreign ministerhad strong words for anyone trying to force a deal on thegovernment.
"We encourage our friends to support us and not make anymistake of putting a gun to anybody's head and saying'either/or', because that cannot work," Moses Wetangula said.
"Even if we get visitors to help us in any way possible,the answer to the problem in Kenya lies with Kenyansthemselves."
His comments looked to be a pointed reference to Bush'sstatement of support for a power-sharing arrangement to end theturmoil that has affected one of the West's allies in its fightagainst al Qaeda and ruined Kenya's reputation for stability.
Bush, who is on the second leg of a five-nation Africatour, says Washington wants to help the talks, not dictate asolution.
Reinforcing that, a White House spokeswoman said Rice didnot expect to come away with a final deal, nor would she offerincentives to encourage the feuding sides to strike a pact.
"But I do think ... they are inching their ways closer andthey need a little bit of help to get there," she said.
"BUYING TIME"
Rice is expected to meet Annan, President Mwai Kibaki andhis opposition rival, Raila Odinga, on Monday.
From the outset, Kibaki's government has been wary of whatit views as foreign meddling in the affairs of a country thatgained independence from Britain in 1963. Odinga says Kibakistole the election.
Although Annan reported considerable progress in lastweek's talks -- including agreement on an independent review ofthe disputed poll -- most Kenyans are waiting for abreakthrough on the contentious "grand coalition" idea he hasadvocated.
Government officials have said the only power-sharing beingconsidered is giving opposition members top jobs in ministriesin Kibaki's half-filled cabinet. But that proposal is unlikelyto satisfy the opposition when talks resume on Tuesday.
In an interview published on Monday, the man who blew thewhistle on one of Kenya's biggest graft scandals said deeperissues like perceived tribal inequalities in land rights, powerand wealth needed to be addressed -- not papered over.
"The elections were merely a trigger for the crisis, withthe subsequent mayhem simply symptomatic of a wider leadershipfailure," John Githongo, Kibaki's exiled former anti-corruptionadviser, told the East African newspaper.
"This will not change and we should not pretend it will.Putting all the belligerents into one government merely buystime. We need to be prepared to think outside the box."
Githongo quit Kenya in early 2005 after he revealed detailsof a scandal in which state contracts worth hundreds ofmillions of dollars were awarded to phantom firms.
(For special coverage from Reuters on Kenya's crisis see:http ://africa.reuters.com/elections/kenya/)
