Leaders of Horn of Africa states meet amid regional tensions

The Somali president has visited Eritrea to discuss bilateral ties and issues of mutual concern, including Ethiopia’s sea access ambitions

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has paid an official visit to Eritrea for talks with the country’s leader, Isaias Afwerki, amid tensions in the Horn of Africa over Ethiopia’s plans to gain access to the Red Sea through a controversial deal with the breakaway region of Somaliland.

President Mohamud arrived in Eritrea’s capital, Asmara, on Wednesday afternoon, Eritrean Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel announced on X.

“The two heads of state will discuss further enhancement of bilateral ties as well as regional and international matters of mutual importance,” he stated.

The two-day trip, reportedly the fourth to the neighboring East African nation in six months, comes at a time when Eritrea has expressed concerns about a preliminary agreement that Ethiopia and Somalia recently signed in Türkiye to ease tensions between them.

READ MORE: Tensions escalate between African neighbors over Red Sea deal

Ethiopia-Somalia relations have deteriorated since Addis Ababa struck a deal with Somaliland to lease its coastline for commercial purposes and build a naval base, reportedly in exchange for recognizing the breakaway territory’s independence. Somalia, which considers Somaliland its own territory despite declaring independence over 30 years ago, has deemed the January 1 pact illegal, an act of aggression, and a threat to its sovereignty.

Mogadishu has since expelled Ethiopian diplomats, including the ambassador, and ordered the closure of two consulates.

However, following talks mediated by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Ankara on December 11, the leaders of the conflicting countries agreed to find commercial arrangements to grant landlocked Ethiopia “enjoy reliable, secure and sustainable access to and from the sea, under the sovereign authority of the Federal Republic of Somalia.”

According to a joint declaration, Somalia and Ethiopia agreed to start technical negotiations by the end of February next year and to conclude them within four months.

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Eritrea, which broke away from Ethiopia in 1993, leaving Africa’s second-most populous state landlocked, has reportedly criticized the Ankara agreement as “ambiguous” and lacking transparency.

According to BBC Somali, Abdulkadir Idris, an adviser to Eritrea’s Foreign Ministry, has warned that his country will reconsider its relationship with Somalia if it confirms that Mogadishu has allowed military use of its waters through the “rushed” deal.

“Somalia is an independent state and free to form agreements with any country. However, we are aware that Ethiopia’s interests are not entirely transparent,” Abdulqadir told the outlet.

In October, Somalia, Eritrea, and Egypt signed a cooperation agreement to strengthen regional and maritime security amid mutual distrust of Ethiopia.