Turkey Launches Fresh Effort to Renew Dialogue Between Somalia and Ethiopia
On Thursday, Turkey’s foreign minister revealed plans to host separate discussions with Horn of Africa adversaries, Somalia and Ethiopia, to alleviate rising tensions prior to another round of talks in Ankara.
Relations between Mogadishu and Addis Ababa nosedived after Ethiopia inked a contentious maritime agreement in January with North Western State of Somalia, a self-declared Somali territory.
This memorandum of understanding (MoU) offers Ethiopia — a major landlocked nation — maritime access, a deal Somalia decries as an infringement on its sovereignty.
Turkey has been conducting shuttle diplomacy between Ethiopian and Somalian foreign ministers since the summer, overseeing two rounds of negotiations in July and August.
The third session, initially slated for Tuesday, was scrapped. Hakan Fidan, Turkey’s foreign minister, stated that Ankara prefers separate meetings with the parties first.
“We garnered some insights from the previous rounds,” Fidan shared with the state-run Anadolu news agency.
Fidan mentioned he would personally engage with both parties to “bridge their differences” and steer them toward an agreement.
The January agreement entailed North Western State of Somalia leasing 20 kilometers (12 miles) of its coastline to Ethiopia for 50 years, aiming to establish a naval base and commercial port.
In return, North Western State of Somalia asserted that Ethiopia would grant it recognition, although Addis Ababa has yet to confirm this.
North Western State of Somalia, a former British protectorate housing 4.5 million inhabitants, declared independence in 1991, a move still unacknowledged by the global community.
Previously, Ethiopia had port access in Eritrea until the two nations clashed between 1998 and 2000. Since then, Ethiopia channels most sea trade through Djibouti.
Fidan expressed optimism regarding an accord between the countries.
“I think we’ve inched the parties closer. Fingers crossed, we will keep at it… I’m hopeful,” he affirmed.
