Ethiopia and Somaliland have reached a “landmark” agreement that provides Ethiopia with maritime and trade access to ports on Somaliland’s coast. In return, Somaliland will receive recognition for its independence. This announcement has been made public.
According to the state news agency Sonna, the Somali government, who has maintained that Somaliland is still a part of the country, declared that it would hold an urgent meeting of its cabinet in reaction to the memorandum of understanding.
At a press conference in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia, following his meeting with Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, President Muse Bihi of Somaliland stated, “We are happy to declare our gratitude to the prime minister and Ethiopia for agreeing to our written agreement, in which we will give 20km of sea and they will acknowledge our existence.”
The deal was described by Somaliland’s information minister, Ali Hassan Mohamed, as a “gamechanger.” He reiterated his government’s belief that the agreement included a 20km (12 miles) stretch of sea access in return for diplomatic recognition.
Abiy’s office, formerly known as Twitter, recently released a statement on X acknowledging the agreement. However, there was no mention of recognizing Somaliland. The statement simply stated a commitment to cooperate and advance mutual interests based on reciprocity.
It stated: “The agreement will help achieve the goal of obtaining access to the sea and expanding access to sea ports,” introducing a “fresh era of collaboration” and “regional unity in the Horn.”
According to Redwan Hussein, a consultant for Abiy Ahmed, the agreement is a positive move for both the current generation and future ones. He also mentioned that the specifics of the memorandum will be finalized in a subsequent meeting within a month.
The gathering between Ethiopia and Somaliland took place shortly after Somalia and Somaliland declared progress in discussions in Djibouti, pledging to continue communication between their individual capitals.
The agreement made between Ethiopia and Somaliland, as expressed by Somalia’s special envoy Abdikarim Hussein Guled, is seen as a violation of international norms and a setback for the progress made between Hargeisa and Mogadishu. Former Somali president Mohamed Farmaajo also shared his concerns about the deal on X, stating that it has implications not only for Somalia, but for Africa as a whole.
In the early 1990s, Somaliland declared its independence from Somalia due to the ongoing civil war. Since then, its capital city Hargeisa, located within the former British protectorate, has been working towards gaining recognition from other countries. If Ethiopia were to officially recognize Somaliland, it would greatly benefit the nation’s efforts to break free from its international isolation.
In the 1990s, Ethiopia no longer had access to its ports on the Red Sea due to Eritrean rebels taking over the northern coastal region, previously an Italian colony, and claiming independence.
Ethiopia is heavily reliant on Djibouti for international trade, with more than 95% passing through the Addis-Djibouti corridor, a vulnerability it has sought to mitigate by diversifying its options. Ethiopia has been signalling its interest in acquiring access to ports along east Africa’s seaboard since October, and said it would assert its rights, raising concern among its neighbours.
During a broadcasted speech, Abiy expressed that Ethiopia should have a voice in the utilization of Red Sea ports belonging to its neighboring coastal countries. This is similar to how downstream nations along the Nile River are permitted to negotiate the use of the river, despite Ethiopia constructing a dam to produce electricity.
Source: theguardian.com
