(25 Jul 2015) US President Barack Obama nudged African nations on Saturday to treat gays and lesbians equally under the law - a position that remains unpopular through much of the continent.
Obama's Kenyan counterpart responded at a joint news conference in Nairobi by calling the matter a "non-issue" for his country.
Obama tackled the sensitive matter on his first full day in Kenya, the country of his father's birth.
He drew on his own background as an African-American, noting the slavery and segregation of the US past and saying he was painfully aware of the history when people are treated differently under the law.
Kenyatta was unmoved, saying gay rights was not really "an issue on the foremost mind of Kenyans".
A number of Kenyan politicians and religious leaders had warned Obama in outspoken terms that any overtures on gay rights would not be welcomed in Kenya, where gay sex is punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
The Kenyan gay community also complains of sometimes violent harassment.
Obama's visit to Kenya - the first by a sitting US president - has been long sought by this East African country where he is widely considered a son of the nation.
Acknowledging that some Kenyans have been frustrated that it took him until the seventh year of his presidency to visit, Obama joked that he didn't want the rest of Africa to think he was "playing favourites."
He will also visit Ethiopia on this trip.
Still, he noted the US had concerns about violence that erupted in Kenya after its 2007 election.
Kenyatta faced charges related to that violence in the International Criminal Court (ICC), though those charges were later dropped.
Deputy President William Ruto, however, still faces charges at the ICC.
Obama said he was encouraged by statements Kenyatta had made about the need to root out corruption in the country, saying that's one issue that could slow down Kenya's economic growth and development.
Much of Obama's discussions with Kenyatta centered on counter-terrorism cooperation.
Kenya has been grappling with deadly attacks from extremists, most notably Somalia-based al-Shabab, a network linked to al-Qaida.
Al-Shabab has conducted major attacks in Kenya, including the 2013 attack on Nairobi's Westgate mall and an April attack in Garissa that killed nearly 150 people.
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