Somalia’s breakaway Somaliland region vowed to push ahead with controversial plans to lease part of its territory to Ethiopia and criticized Turkish efforts to mediate an end to a standoff over the deal.
Somaliland agreed in January to allow Ethiopia to build a port on its coastline in exchange for a stake in its national airline.
The deal outraged Somalia, which considers Somaliland an integral part of its territory and complained that its sovereignty had been breached. Turkey has hosted a series of talks between Ethiopia and Somalia, with the next round due to take place on Sept. 17.
“We have been monitoring the talks initiated by Turkey,” Somaliland’s foreign affairs ministry said in a statement. “Turkey’s growing involvement in such regional matters is a clear indication of its lack of impartiality as a mediator, and its aim is to directly interfere with the memorandum of understanding between Somaliland and Ethiopia.”
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said a collaborative and constructive solution to the dispute appeared in reach.
“Our goal as Turkey is, and continues to be, reconciling existing concerns and bridge the gaps in a manner that will benefit not only Somalia and Ethiopia, but also the region as a whole,” he said late Tuesday. “We aim to be able to finalize the specific parameters of a sustainable and viable outcome to the benefit of all concerned.”
Meanwhile, Somalian President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud held talks on Wednesday with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi and they signed an agreement aimed at bolstering security cooperation.
The pact was “testament to a future of common defense against the international terrorism we are combating both at home and abroad,” the Somalian leader said in a statement. He expressed his profound gratitude to Egypt and El-Sisi “for their unwavering support of Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”
