NewsRescue
Somalia has rejected mediation in a dispute with Ethiopia, claiming that a solution is only feasible if its landlocked East African neighbour reverses a Red Sea access pact it signed with breakaway Somaliland.
Relations between Mogadishu and Addis Abeba have deteriorated since Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Somaliland’s president, Muse Bihi Abdi, signed a memorandum of agreement in early January providing Ethiopia access to the Red Sea port of Berbera for 50 years.
Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991, although it has yet to be recognised officially as an independent state. Mogadishu, which considers Somaliland part of its territory, has condemned the marine agreement as an act of aggression and a violation of its territorial integrity and sovereignty.
Mogadishu has vowed to go to war to prevent the agreement from being implemented, accusing Addis Abeba of conspiring to assault Somali seas and Arab countries in the Red Sea. In reaction to the escalating tensions, the African Union (AU) appealed for calm and “meaningful dialogue” between the two member nations during a meeting on Wednesday.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the Somali government said it had taken note of the AU’s suggestion but argued that Ethiopia had breached its sovereignty by signing a “illegal” agreement with the “Somaliland administration.”
“There is no room for mediation unless Ethiopia withdraws its illegal MOU and reaffirms Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,” Somalia’s Foreign Ministry stated in a statement released on X (previously Twitter).
The deal with Somaliland would see 20km (12 miles) of coastland around the port of Berbera on the Gulf of Aden leased to Ethiopia for five decades for commercial purposes and the construction of a military base.
Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, whose country joined BRICS+ on January 1, has emphasised the importance of access to the Red Sea, one of the world’s key trading routes, for Ethiopia’s economic progress. Since becoming landlocked following Eritrea’s secession in 1993, the Horn of Africa nation has relied heavily on the port of neighbouring Djibouti for the majority of its marine trade.
While Addis Abeba hails the Somaliland agreement as a success, Mogadishu has called for international opposition. On Thursday, Ethiopian State Minister of Foreign Affairs Mesganu Arega Moach accused the Arab League of interfering with the country’s internal affairs after the 22-nation bloc labelled the MOU “a clear violation of international law.”
