Related Post
A tripartite summit was held today, Thursday, in the Eritrean capital, Asmara, in which the Eritrean President participated Isaiah Afwerki And his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El-Sisi And Somali Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud In light of tension between Somalia and its neighbor Ethiopia.
During the summit, the leaders discussed “ways to strengthen relations between the three countries in various fields, in addition to regional situations and efforts to establish stability and security in the region.” Horn of Africa andRed Sea“, according to what was reported by the Somali News Agency (SONA).
Afwerki was at the forefront of welcoming Sisi upon his arrival in Asmara, on a visit of unannounced duration, according to what was reported by the official Egyptian News Agency.
A statement by the Egyptian presidency stated that Sisi’s visit to Asmara will address “discussing ways to strengthen bilateral relations in various fields, in addition to regional situations and efforts to consolidate stability and security in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea, in a way that supports the development process and achieves the interests of the peoples of the region.”
Before the Egyptian President arrived in Asmara to join the tripartite summit, Sheikh Mahmoud and Afwerki held extensive talks, which included “stressing the necessity of strengthening bilateral cooperation between the two friendly countries in the important tasks of preserving Somalia’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, independence and unity,” according to Sona.
A joint statement by the Egyptian and Somali presidents also stated that they agreed to enhance cooperation in order to “enable the Somali National Federal Army to confront terrorism in all its forms and protect its land and sea borders.”
Horn of Africa tensions
The tripartite summit comes in light of the tensions witnessed in the Horn of Africa region since last January, after the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Ethiopia and the separatist region of Somaliland, allowing Addis Ababa to build a naval base on the Red Sea in the region in exchange for diplomatic recognition of it, amid Somali-Arab rejection of the step. Egypt tops it as a violation of Mogadishu's sovereignty.
Yesterday, Wednesday, the Somali government defended the recent security agreement it signed with Egypt, describing it as similar to existing partnerships with the United States, Turkey, the European Union, and the Gulf states.
In late August, Ethiopia accused Egypt of providing military aid to Somalia, considering that this “amounts to the level of external interference that may cause destabilization in the Horn of Africa.”
There are also disagreements between Egypt and Ethiopia regarding the Renaissance Dam, which the latter is building on one of Egypt’s most important water resourcesNile River -The main source of water in Egypt- andEntebbe Agreement Regarding the distribution of shares of Nile water, which both Cairo and Khartoum reject as affecting their historical shares of the river’s water.
