Somali and Ethiopian governments meet in Turkey to ease tensions over Somaliland region

2 Jul. () –

The governments of Somalia and Ethiopia met in Turkey on Monday at the request of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, who has acted as mediator in the tensions that have arisen between Addis Ababa and Mogadishu after the Ethiopian authorities signed a memorandum of understanding with the semi-autonomous Somali region of Somaliland that provided for access to the sea and the creation of a naval base in exchange for its recognition.

“The Turkish government has invited delegations from Somalia and Ethiopia to Ankara to discuss the current crisis. (…) The first meeting has been concluded and a second round of talks has been scheduled for 2 September 2024,” the Somali Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

The ministry said the “discussion” was “very different”, without specifying in what sense, and recalled that its position is that Ethiopia should withdraw from the “illegal” memorandum of understanding and should not enter into negotiations with the region.

The meeting was not attended “face to face” by both parties due to Mogadishu’s refusal, although they were present at the end of the meeting.

Relations between Somalia and Ethiopia have deteriorated following Addis Ababa’s agreement with Somaliland to gain naval and commercial access for a period of 50 years in exchange for Addis Ababa recognising its independence. Somaliland would also get a share of the profits from the operation of Ethiopian Airlines, the Ethiopian flag carrier.

Ethiopia lost direct access to the sea in 1993 when Eritrea gained independence after three decades of conflict. Its main trade route now runs along roads and a railway linking Addis Ababa to a port in Djibouti, one of five coastal neighbours that include Somalia, Eritrea, Sudan and Kenya.