Dr. Workneh Gebeyehu, the Executive Secretary of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), has voiced significant apprehensions about the recent diplomatic tension between Somalia and Ethiopia. This concern arose following Ethiopia’s Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed, entering into a port agreement with the self-declared independent region of Somaliland.
Dr. Gebeyehu has called on the leadership of IGAD to actively engage in the situation and has urged both nations to work cooperatively towards a peaceful and mutually agreeable solution, reinforcing the principles that bind the IGAD community together.
IGAD has reiterated its commitment to fostering peace, stability, cooperation, and regional unity, noting its vigilant observation of the evolving situation and acknowledging the potential impacts on the region’s equilibrium.
The contentious accord, finalized in Ethiopia’s capital by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Somaliland’s President Muse Bihi Abdi on Monday, aims to facilitate Ethiopia’s establishment of maritime commercial operations through access to a leased military base on the Red Sea, as disclosed by Abiy’s National Security advisor Redwan Hussien.
In response, the Somali administration has condemned the agreement, categorizing it as an encroachment on Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity and a serious menace to its maritime assets. It has pledged to safeguard these resources.
President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has implored the Ethiopian authorities to halt their involvement in Somali affairs, a stance underscored by Somalia’s decision to summon its ambassador to Ethiopia back for consultations, highlighting the perceived risk this agreement poses to the stability of the region.
Despite its self-proclaimed independence in 1991, Somaliland has yet to receive broad international acknowledgment. Somalia maintains that Somaliland remains within its national borders.
