Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud visited Cairo and met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi on Wednesday to witness the signing of a co-operation protocol between both their countries' militaries.
After the signing ceremony, Mr El Sisi affirmed Egypt's commitment to preserving Somalia's territorial integrity and rejected “any intervention in its internal affairs”.
During the press conference held after the meeting, Mr Mohamud lauded the historic pact as a “testament to a future of common defence against the international terrorism we are combating both at home and abroad.”
He further asserted that the agreement serves as a “blueprint for the exchange of knowledge and expertise in the pursuit of regional, continental, and international peace and security.”
Mr El Sisi offered his condolences to Mr Mohamud and the Somali people for the recent terrorist attack in Mogadishu. He congratulated Somalia on the lifting of international sanctions and its upcoming term on the UN Security Council in 2025-2026, on which it was awarded a non-permanent seat in April.
Mr El Sisi highlighted the steps taken to improve ties, including the reopening of a revamped Egyptian embassy in Mogadishu the resumption of Egyptair flights between Cairo and the Somali capital, and the presence of Egypt's Banque Misr in Somalia.
He underscored Egypt's stance of non-interference and respect for national sovereignty. “We always call for construction, development and reconstruction, and we never interfere in the affairs of states,” he said. “What governs our policy paths is respect for international law, international norms, and the sovereignty of states.”
Mr El Sisi said he was ready to contribute troops to an African Union peacekeeping force stationed in Somalia, but “only if we are asked to”.
Egypt has repeatedly voiced its support of Somalia's unity and its rejection of an agreement signed between Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Muse Bihi Abdi, the President of Somaliland, a region of Somalia with separatist ambitions.
The Ethiopia-Somaliland deal, denounced by Egypt and Somalia since its signing in January, would provide landlocked Ethiopia with 20km of Somalia’s coastline which it intends to use to build a naval base.
The naval base is viewed as a threat to Egypt’s military supremacy in the Red Sea and portions of its Africa-bound maritime trade, which Addis Ababa’s port would partly receive instead.
“The defence pact between Somalia and Egypt was an example of astute manoeuvring by Cairo which has been trying to rally African support in its dispute with Ethiopia over the Rennaissance Dam,” African affairs analyst Hatim Dirdiri told The National.
“Egypt was able to leverage the rifts between Ethiopia and its neighbours in the Horn of Africa. The pact took everyone by surprise, most of all Abiy Ahmed, who was confronted with the reality that Ethiopia's bid for power in the region was estranging it from its neighbours.”
The deal has worsened relations between Cairo and Addis Ababa. Both nations have had strained ties over Ethiopia’s construction of a mega dam on the Blue Nile, seen by Egypt as an existential threat to its share of the Nile’s waters.
On Monday, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, who met with Mr Mohamud in the Rwandan capital, Kigali, earlier this week at the inauguration of President Paul Kagame, reaffirmed Egypt’s “unwavering support for Somali sovereignty and the unity and security of its lands”.
A round of indirect talks held between Ethiopia and Somali officials on Tuesday ended with no final resolution and with both sides largely fixed in their positions.
The talks, held in Ankara and mediated by Turkey, did not include any face-to-face meetings with representatives of both sides but involved messages being sent through Turkish intermediaries, diplomatic sources told the Anadolu Agency.
The Somali Foreign Ministry thanked Turkey for hosting the talks and said that it intended to participate in a future round of talks. However, a ministry statement said that it remained “steadfast in safeguarding its sovereignty and territorial integrity”.
Earlier this week, Mr Ahmed called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and emphasised Addis Ababa's commitment to gaining sea access.
In April, Somalia recalled its ambassador to Ethiopia. Mogadishu then announced a defence pact with Cairo which was ratified by the Somali parliament in July.
The pact came months after remarks from Mr El Sisi made during a joint press conference in January with Mr Sheikh Mohamud who was in Cairo at the time, ostensibly aimed at Ethiopia.
“Egypt will not allow anyone to threaten Somalia or affect its security,” Mr El Sisi said. “Do not try Egypt, or try to threaten its brothers especially if they ask it to intervene.”
Somaliland, a region in the north-west of Somalia, declared its independence in 1991 after the collapse of the Somali central government. Formerly known as British Somaliland during the colonial era, the region briefly gained independence in 1960 before uniting with Italian Somaliland to form the Somali Republic.
However, Somalilanders felt marginalised by the central government in Mogadishu, leading to a rebellion in the 1980s. After a civil war in which the central government collapsed, Somaliland unilaterally declared its independence, citing the right to self-determination and the desire to establish a stable, democratic state.
