Red Sea shipping attacks spur deeper US outreach to Somalia
WASHINGTON — Escalating assaults on commercial vessels in the Red Sea are drawing the United States deeper into diplomacy across the Horn of Africa, with Somalia emerging as a key focus as Washington looks to protect security along one of the world’s most vital sea lanes, regional analysts say.
The shift comes as the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the narrow passage connecting the Gulf of Aden with the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, faces growing pressure from repeated attacks on merchant ships. Alongside continuing worries over the Strait of Hormuz, the unrest has intensified concerns about possible disruption to Middle Eastern oil exports and helped push crude prices higher.
In response, President Donald Trump’s administration has discreetly expanded contacts with governments in the Horn of Africa, including Somalia, to address regional security and the stability of the Red Sea, according to officials familiar with the discussions.
Earlier this month, White House senior adviser for Arab and African affairs Massad Boulos held talks in Cairo with the foreign ministers of Somalia and Eritrea. Egyptian officials also took part in the meeting, which centered on security challenges in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea as attacks on commercial shipping continue to rise.
Security specialists say Washington is trying to keep the Horn of Africa from becoming a fresh flashpoint in an already volatile region, noting that the area is central to the protection of one of the busiest maritime trade corridors in the world.
The stepped-up diplomacy highlights Somalia’s increasing strategic value to the United States as tensions around the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait ripple across global trade, energy markets and international security.
AXADLETM
