Somalia excludes Ethiopian troops from the new peace mission in the country due to the diplomatic conflict between them

MADRID 9 Nov. (EUROPA PRESS) –

The Minister of Defense of Somalia, Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur Jama, has finally confirmed this Saturday that his country will not allow Ethiopian troops to be part of the troop deployment within the framework of the new African Union mission (AUSSOM) that will soon replace the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS), even though Ethiopia has previously been the main contributor.

This decision has been given mainly by the diplomatic conflict that has confronted both countries since Ethiopia signed an agreement with the Somali separatist state of Somaliland to obtain access to the Red Sea in exchange for its formal recognition, a document that Mogadishu views as an absolute outrage. to its sovereignty.

“Ethiopian forces have been officially excluded from the new AUSSOM mission that will begin in early 2025 because Ethiopia has violated the independence and territorial integrity of Somalia,” the minister concluded in statements to Somali national television STN.

Ethiopia currently maintains 3,000 soldiers in Somalia under the ATMIS and has also deployed between 5,000 and 7,000 soldiers in other regions under a bilateral agreement.

Tension in the region worsened even further after Egypt signed a defense agreement with Somalia in August this year and sent weapons to Mogadishu, fueling the rivalry between the Egyptian and Ethiopian governments over the existence of the Great Dam. Renaissance, raised by Ethiopia, and which Cairo understands as an enormous threat to its agriculture on the banks of the Nile.