KAMPALA, Uganda (AP) — The head of the U.S. military's Africa Command is visiting Uganda, a key ally in the fight against Islamic extremists, to plan regional security with Ugandan brass.

The U.S. Embassy in Uganda said Wednesday that Gen. David M. Rodriguez also awarded the U.S. Legion of Merit military award to six Ugandan military officers, including the country's top military commander.

The east African nation of Uganda is a key ally of Washington on regional security, especially in Somalia where Uganda's government was the first to deploy troops to protect a weak federal government from the al-Qaida-linked rebels of al-Shabab.

Ugandan troops and U.S. forces, acting as military advisers, are also cooperating in the hunt for the fugitive Ugandan warlord Joseph Kony in the jungles of central Africa.