Somalia looks to Belgrade: a Cold War friendship recalibrates for a new security era
Belgrade — On a brisk morning in the Serbian capital, Somalia’s defense chief Ahmed Moallim Fiqi moved between government buildings off Kneza Miloša Street, the city’s corridor of power where the architecture still whispers the history of a country once at the heart of the Non-Aligned Movement. His meetings — with Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Ivica Dačić, senior security officials including Vladimir Orlić, and Defense Minister Bratislav Gašić — sounded at first like a standard diplomatic call. But the agenda was weighty: stepping up cooperation on security, policing, and defense at a time when both countries are recalibrating long-standing ties to suit new realities.
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“Strengthening bilateral cooperation” can be a vague diplomatic phrase, but in this case it signals something more specific. Somalia is pressing ahead with the difficult task of consolidating its security institutions after years of insurgency and international troop drawdowns. Serbia, for its part, has been quietly rebuilding relationships across Africa, revisiting friendships that date to Belgrade’s heyday as a convener of the Global South. The alignment is not accidental.
Why this meeting matters now
For Mogadishu, diversifying security partnerships is not just strategy — it is survival politics. Somalia has leaned on the African Union, the United States, Turkey, and the European Union in training, logistics, and counterterrorism support. Adding Belgrade to the rolodex brings a different kind of experience: police training rooted in European practice, intelligence coordination honed in the Balkans, and a defense industry with a reputation for reliable, mid-cost equipment.
For Serbia, outreach to Somalia sits within a broader effort to revive ties across Africa and Asia — a blend of pragmatic diplomacy and historical memory. Belgrade has long seen value in relationships that translate into votes at the United Nations and avenues for trade in sectors from agriculture to defense. Security cooperation, if handled carefully, can be a bridge to wider economic engagement.
The officials kept their statements concise, emphasizing enhanced collaboration in internal affairs, security coordination, and the exchange of expertise. The substance will be tested in what comes next: training programs, technical agreements, and the rhythm of follow-up visits.
A relationship born in the Non-Aligned era
Serbia and Somalia share a particular history. In 1961, Belgrade hosted the inaugural summit of the Non-Aligned Movement, where newly independent states sought space between Cold War blocs. Somalia, then an emergent nation with its own complex regional challenges, joined that project of strategic autonomy. Those ties never disappeared; they simply quieted as both countries wrestled with internal upheaval.
Today, that old vocabulary is finding new uses. In a polycentric world, alignments are less binary. Middle and smaller powers often hedge — engaging the West while also building south-south partnerships that offer training, technology, or political solidarity without heavy conditionality. Seen through that prism, the Belgrade meetings are not an outlier, but part of a pattern stretching from the Horn of Africa to the Balkans.
What cooperation could look like
Police and internal security
Serbia’s Ministry of Interior has experience in border management, crowd control, and organized crime investigations that could map onto Somalia’s needs. Exchange programs for officers, cybercrime workshops, and forensic training are feasible first steps. Joint work on document security or INTERPOL coordination would be low-risk, high-impact areas.
Defense and demining
Serbia’s defense sector manufactures small arms, ammunition, and protective gear, and its engineers have extensive demining expertise — a critical capacity in countries recovering from conflict. Any procurement or training would need to adhere to UN and national regulations governing transfers to ensure equipment is tracked and properly used.
Intelligence and counterterrorism
Information sharing and analytical training are often the quiet backbone of such partnerships. The meetings with senior Serbian security figures suggest interest in structured channels that help Somali counterparts strengthen early warning and threat analysis against extremist groups.
The geopolitics behind the handshake
Serbia’s renewed attention to Africa is not purely sentimental. Belgrade seeks partners that understand what it means to navigate pressure from larger powers while guarding policy autonomy. It also seeks diplomatic support in international forums, where African votes can be consequential. That doesn’t make Somalia a pawn; rather, it gives Mogadishu leverage to extract practical benefits in training, equipment, and civilian security reform.
On the Somali side, this outreach is part of a broader move to reduce overreliance on a small set of external patrons. Governments in the Horn have learned — sometimes painfully — that single-channel relationships carry political costs. A portfolio approach, if well managed, builds resilience.
Yet the possibilities come with thresholds and caveats. Security cooperation tends to attract scrutiny — and rightly so. International observers and Somali civil society will ask whether any new tools or training are accompanied by oversight mechanisms, human rights safeguards, and accountability for misuse. The integrity of Somalia’s security forces has improved, but the risk of diversion and corruption is real and must be guarded against through transparent procurement and strong internal controls.
From intent to impact
Grand statements of partnership often wilt without a thread of practical action. The test in the months ahead is whether the two governments can convert diplomatic warmth into measurable outcomes. Watch for memoranda of understanding that specify timelines and units responsible for delivery; pilot training cohorts; and joint public briefings that set expectations. Transparent reporting — even basic progress notes — can go a long way toward building public confidence on both sides.
Another marker is whether cooperation expands beyond security into civilian governance: public administration training, digital services, scholarships, or healthcare partnerships. Those investments are slower burn, but they root a relationship in institutions rather than individuals.
Belgrade’s message, Mogadishu’s moment
In a world that often talks about big-power rivalry, this week’s meetings in Belgrade offered a reminder that smaller and mid-sized states still make their own weather. Serbia is telling partners in Africa that it remembers old friendships and is ready to do business in a way that focuses on skills and practical tools. Somalia is signaling that it will assemble its security puzzle from many pieces — Arab, African, European, and beyond — to meet a generational challenge at home.
If both sides keep the focus on tangible reforms and the public good, the partnership can be more than a photo-op. The next chapters will be written not in summit rooms but in training classrooms, police precincts, and logistics depots — places where results are counted in safer streets and better institutions. For now, the message from Belgrade is clear: the old NAM corridors are open, and they lead to new possibilities.
What do citizens in both countries want from this? In Somalia: security that is professional, lawful, and locally rooted. In Serbia: partnerships that are transparent, responsible, and economically sensible. Those demands are not in conflict — they are the foundation for credibility. The headlines will fade, but the work, if done well, can endure.
By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.
