Somaliland signs agreement with Ethiopia, closes Egyptian Library
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Ethiopia and Somaliland signed a deal early this year that grants Ethiopia access to naval and commercial ports along Somaliland's coast.
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Foreign Minister of the breakaway region of Somaliland, Issa Kayed Mohamud (Agencies)
The administration of the breakaway region of Somaliland has announced the end of negotiations with Ethiopia regarding the signing of a cooperation agreement.
The so-called foreign minister of the separatist region, Issa Kayed Mahmoud, stated that "Negotiations on the memorandum of understanding signed with Ethiopia have ended, and the official agreement will be signed soon."
Ethiopia and Somaliland signed a deal early this year that grants Ethiopia access to naval and commercial ports along Somaliland's coast, in exchange for recognition of the breakaway republic's independence.
The government in Mogadishu has denounced the Somaliland deal with Ethiopia as an attack on its sovereignty and vowed to thwart it by any means necessary, expelling Ethiopia's ambassador and recalling its own.
In a related context, the government of the Somaliland region announced that it had decided to close the “Egyptian Cultural Library” in the region’s capital, Hargeisa, “permanently,” citing what it described as “serious security concerns.”
In the same context, Minister Kaid Mahmoud confirmed that "the library employees were given 72 hours to leave" the region.
It is noteworthy that the "Islamic Culture Library" in Hargeisa, the capital of the "Somaliland" region, is an Egyptian cultural library that was the first public library in the region. It was built by the Egyptian government in the 1960s and is affiliated with the Egyptian Ministry of Higher Education.
Ethiopia captures airports in Somalia to prevent Egypt's entry
Ethiopian forces have taken control of important airports in the Gedo area of Jubaland state in southern Somalia, including Luuq, Dolo, and Bardheere, which serve as the only gateways to the region's cities.
According to the Somali Guardian, "the Ethiopian move came as part of an attempt to stop the possible airlift of Egyptian forces to the region," which are scheduled to replace Ethiopian forces who run multiple military posts in the states of South West, Jubaland, and Hirshabelle.
The publication added that "these developments coincided with the escalation of tensions between the governments of Mogadishu and Addis Ababa," after Ethiopia signed a memorandum of understanding with the separatist region of Somaliland to access the Red Sea.
"These airports are the only points of access to cities in the Gedo region, where the Al-Shabaab movement controls the main roads."
Ethiopia and Somalia are embroiled in a dispute with neighboring Somalia over a maritime agreement signed with the breakaway region Somaliland. Additionally, relations with Egypt remain strained over Ethiopia’s construction of the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Blue Nile.
Ethiopia will 'humiliate anyone who dares to threaten us': PM Abiy
Ethiopia would "humiliate" any nation attempting to threaten its sovereignty, the country's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed warned on Sunday.
“We will not be touched! However, we will humiliate anyone who dares to threaten us in order to dissuade them," Abiy underlined during a Sovereignty Day ceremony in the capital Addis Ababa.
"We won't negotiate with anyone on Ethiopia's sovereignty and dignity," he was quoted as saying by the official Ethiopian News Agency.
A couple of weeks ago, Ethiopia appointed an ambassador to Somaliland, further escalating tensions with Somalia and Egypt.
Last month, Ethiopia accused unnamed external actors of attempting to destabilize the region after Egypt provided military equipment to Somalia following the signing of a military cooperation pact between Cairo and Mogadishu.
Furthermore, Egypt has offered to deploy troops to Somalia under a new African Union-led mission, which is set to replace the existing peacekeeping force, ATMIS, next year. Ethiopia is a major contributor to ATMIS, which supports Somali forces in their fight against the al-Shabaab terrorist group.
