Somalia 'ready for a war' with Ethiopia over breakaway territory

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
14 Jan 2024 10:13

The Horn of Africa witnessed turmoil after Ethiopia signed an agreement to build a port in breakaway Somaliland without the knowledge of Somalia, thus threatening to breach the country's sovereignty.

Somalia's President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud listens during an interview on his visit to the United Nations, Tuesday, December 12, 2023, at UN headquarters. (AP)

"Prepare for the defense of our homeland," Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said while a senior presidential advisor explained, "We are pursuing all diplomatic options and I think Ethiopia will come to its senses, but we are ready for a war if Abiy [Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed] wants a war."

A memorandum of understanding between Somaliland and Ethiopia, a landlocked country seeking maritime access, was signed on January 1st. The agreement allegedly gave Ethiopia access to build a port in Somaliland, which the breakaway region of Somaliland would bring it legitimacy as it remains unrecognized internationally, as it was reported that Ethiopia would recognize Somaliland's independence as per the agreement.

Somalia, which also does not recognize Somaliland as an independent state but as part of Somalia, has declared the agreement void after Mogadishu declared that the deal "caught Somalia by surprise."

Lacking formal recognition, Somaliland has so far failed to attract investment and has been cut off from worldwide financial transactions, which are currently channeled through Mogadishu. In an interview with the Observer, Somaliland’s foreign minister, Essa Kayd, said the port deal with Ethiopia was set to "legitimize our self-determination" and could spark a "domino effect" of other countries recognizing the territory.

It is worth noting that when the Somali president nullified the port deal between Ethiopia and Somaliland, on January 6, he wrote in a post on X that the decision made "With the support of our lawmakers & our people" served as an "illustration of our commitment to safeguard our unity, sovereignty & territorial integrity as per international law."

This evening,I signed the law nullifying the illegal MoU between the Gov’t of Ethiopia & Somaliland. With the support of our lawmakers & our people, this law is an illustration of our commitment to safeguard our unity, sovereignty & territorial integrity as per international law. pic.twitter.com/UajOPm2qVB
— Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (@HassanSMohamud) January 6, 2024

Somaliland Defense Minister, Mahmoud Ateye, resigned in protest after finding out from the media about the breakaway state's agreement with Ethiopia.

Somalia, Somaliland ink historic security cooperation agreement

Somalia's government reached a comprehensive security cooperation agreement with the breakaway Somaliland region following years of stalled tensions, as reported by Somalian media on December 30.

Earlier, the leaders of Somalia and Somaliland, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Muse Bihi Abdi respectively, convened a meeting hosted by Djibouti's President Ismail Omar Guelleh to restart discussions regarding the political status of the autonomous region situated in northern Somalia.

During these talks, both parties committed to an 8-point agreement, which includes combating organized crime and developing a negotiation roadmap within a 30-day timeframe, as outlined by the Garowe Online news website.

Somaliland has seen relative peace with the central Somali government. However, fighting broke out between Somaliland and pro-Mogadishu groups in February, before tensions were addressed later.