Somalia confirmed on Tuesday that a deal had been signed between its breakaway region of Somaliland and Ethiopia allowing Ethiopia to use the Red Sea port of Berbera in Somaliland. However, the East African country noted that the deal had no legal force and threatened regional stability, as seen in the American news platform Reuters.
“Ethiopia would offer Somaliland a stake in state-owned Ethiopian Airlines in return for giving it access to the Red Sea, Abiy's national security adviser said on Monday, without giving more details,” the Reuters report states.
Another report seen in the Ugandan news publication, The Monitor, reaffirmed Somalia’s displeasure with the deal, as the country vowed to use any means, albeit, legal, to defend its territory.
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“Somaliland is a part of Somalia under Somalia's constitution, so Somalia finds this step to be a clear violation against its sovereignty and unity,” the Somali cabinet relayed via a statement.
The Somali government called the deal irrelevant, stating that the MOU between Ethiopia and Somaliland is “null and void with no legal basis, and Somalia will not accept it. In response to this, the Somali government has recalled its ambassador to Ethiopia for consultation”
Somalia also revealed that it has called upon the United Nations, the African Union, the Arab League, and other groups to stand with them in defending their rights against the East African giant, Ethiopia.
Addressing his nation, Prime Minister Hamza Abdi Barre, of Somalia urged Somalians to remain calm. He stated: “I want to assure you that we are committed to defending the country, we will not allow an inch of land, sea or skies to be violated.
We will defend our land with any legal means possible. We must unite and forget about our differences to defend our land, integrity, and sovereignty.”
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