Somalia announced yesterday it had signed a defense and economic cooperation deal with Turkey that reportedly includes maritime security support, authorizing Ankara to train and equip the Somali navy so it can better defend its territorial waters. The deal was signed earlier this month and will reportedly be in force for the next decade. (AP)
Our Take
The Somalia-Turkey agreement is just the latest development in the continued fallout from a deal signed on Jan. 1 between Ethiopia and Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia that remains unrecognized internationally. That agreement grants Ethiopia, which is landlocked, access to some of Somaliland’s coastline and use of its port, potentially in exchange for diplomatic recognition of Somaliland.
Until this year, the Somaliland situation, while an irritant for Mogadishu, had largely been static. The breakaway region had enjoyed de facto independence for decades without having made any progress on international recognition, while Somalia focused more attention on its war against the Islamist militant group Al-Shabaab. Now, Ethiopia’s reported pledge to recognize Somaliland—notably at a time when quasi-states appear to have more leverage in the global order—has set off a cascade of regional effects, including some saber-rattling.