Somali Government Settles Dispute Between Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania

Somalia resolves rare public spat between embassies in Kenya and Tanzania

MOGADISHU — Somalia’s federal government says it has resolved a rare and public dispute between its embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, closing ranks after an internal review and new guidance meant to prevent a repeat.

The rift surfaced in September after Somalia’s embassy in Tanzania criticized a visit by the Somali ambassador to Kenya to Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo. In a statement at the time, the Tanzanian mission said the trip was carried out without its knowledge, violated diplomatic norms and encroached on its mandate — a sensitive point because Somalia’s ambassador to Tanzania, Ilyas Ali Hassan, also serves as the country’s nonresident ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo and to the East African Community.

Somalia’s embassy in Kenya rejected the rebuke, arguing the Kinshasa visit was aimed at strengthening trade ties and promoting opportunities for Somali businesspeople working across the region.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Ali Omar Balcad said the matter has since been addressed through an internal process led by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “The matter has been resolved,” Balcad said in an interview with the Mizan Podcast.

According to Balcad, the ministry convened an advisory committee composed of former Somali ambassadors to examine the sequence of events and assess whether established procedures had been followed. Both envoys were summoned to appear before the panel, which issued recommendations designed to improve coordination and ensure clearer lines of responsibility between missions.

Balcad called the episode “unfortunate” but said it offered a practical lesson for the foreign service. “It was unfortunate that the mistake happened, but we learned from it. We hope it will not happen again,” he said.

He also acknowledged shortcomings in training and internal guidance within Somalia’s diplomatic corps. The ministry, he said, will issue clearer instructions on inter-mission communication, approval protocols for travel and engagement, and the specific scope of mandates held by nonresident ambassadors. The goal is to avoid overlaps in representation and to reinforce coordination across embassies, especially in subregional portfolios such as the East African Community.

The diplomatic dust-up, while brief, drew attention because public disagreements between embassies are uncommon — particularly at a time when Somalia is expanding its external engagement and seeking to present a cohesive voice with regional and international partners. It also underscored the operational strain on a foreign service still rebuilding after decades of institutional collapse.

Officials framed the ministry’s remedial steps as part of a broader effort to professionalize the service and strengthen policy discipline as Somalia deepens ties with neighbors including Kenya and Tanzania, and with regional bodies that shape trade and security agendas in East Africa.

While the ministry did not disclose the advisory panel’s full recommendations, Balcad’s remarks signal a focus on standardized procedures and stronger oversight. For a diplomatic network that is simultaneously expanding and modernizing, those changes are intended to offer embassies firmer guidance on roles, communication and accountability — and to keep intra-service disagreements from spilling into public view.

By Ali Musa
Axadle Times international–Monitoring.

Sunday January 25, 2026