Mogadishu, Somalia — Tensions between Somalia and Ethiopia escalated over the weekend following allegations by Somalia’s president that Ethiopian safety forces tried to bar him from attending the African Union summit in Addis Ababa.
The incident got here amid a dispute between the international locations involving the breakaway area of Somaliland.
Talking to journalists earlier than chopping quick his journey, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud stated the actions of the Ethiopian forces have been a part of a grand scheme by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to annex a part of Somalia.
“This morning after I ready myself to attend the closing session of the summit, the Ethiopian safety blocked my method,” Mohamud stated Saturday, including that he wasn’t allowed “to come back out of the lodge and go on with my vehicles and entourage.”
Ethiopia, he stated, wished “to annex a part of Somalia to Ethiopia and to disrespect the African Union summit members like me.”
The Somali president ultimately gained entry to the assembly, getting into with the safety workforce of Djibouti President Ismael Omar Guelleh.
The Ethiopian authorities rejected Mohamud’s declare and stated the Somali chief and his delegation declined to be accompanied by a safety element assigned to him.
Laborious to put blame
Matt Bryden, co-founder of Sahan Analysis, a coverage and safety assume tank, stated he thought it wasn’t simple to apportion blame, as a result of there might have been a breakdown in safety protocol.
“Both the Ethiopians unreasonably denied entry to the president and his safety element, or the Somali safety personnel escorting the president have been making an attempt to convey weapons right into a location into which they weren’t permitted,” Bryden stated.
The claims by Mohamud escalated tensions that have been already working excessive due to an settlement signed New 12 months’s Day between Abiy and Somaliland President Muse Bihi.
The memorandum of understanding would grant landlocked Ethiopia entry to the Gulf of Aden to construct a naval base. In trade, in keeping with Somaliland, Ethiopia would acknowledge it as an unbiased state. Ethiopia, nonetheless, stated it could merely take into account that risk.
Somalia, which nonetheless considers Somaliland a part of its territory, is insisting the settlement be canceled.
The African Union has referred to as for dialogue to resolve the difficulty, however a former Somali authorities minister, Abdullahi Godah Barre, stated that wasn’t the correct transfer now.
Barre stated dialogue is all the time good, however Ethiopia has to retract the deal in order that the dialogue will probably be with out circumstances. Nobody, he stated, will settle for negotiations based mostly on annexation.
Ethiopia has not explicitly rejected Somalia’s annexation declare, however Abiy stated this month that “Ethiopia doesn’t want to hurt Somalia.”
In keeping with Bryden, the difficulty is difficult by Somalia’s dependence on Ethiopian troops for safety in southwestern components of the nation.
“Somalia has nonetheless not referred to as for Ethiopian troops to depart southwestern Somalia, which might be disastrous, as a result of presumably, locations like Beletweyn, Bulobarde, Baidoa and different cities would fall into the arms of al-Shabab if Ethiopia have been to take action,” he stated.
Ethiopia and Somalia have a protracted historical past of tensions and have even gone to conflict with one another. Nevertheless, in recent times, the 2 international locations have loved comparatively pleasant relations. Ethiopia at the moment deploys its troops into Somalia inside and outdoors the African Union framework.
