Somalia’s UN envoy accused Ethiopian troops on Monday of crossing the countries' shared border illegally and confronting local security forces.
“Somalia reaffirms its commitment to respecting the principles enshrined in the UN Charter and good neighbourliness,” Abukar Osman told the 15-member Security Council.
“And we expect Ethiopia to do the same by reconsidering its memorandum of misadventure without any further delay.”
Mr Osman said that, because of Ethiopia’s “destabilising actions” in the wider region, Mogadishu has had to postpone from July to September the withdrawal of troops with the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia.
Atmis is expected to conclude operations in the country on December 31 after 17 years in the country.
The force was initially deployed to expel Al Qaeda-affiliated Al Shabab from the Somali capital and to assist the internationally recognised federal government.
Operating under a UN mandate, the AU force aims to prevent a resurgence of Al Shabab and to train Somali security forces.
Tensions are escalating between Addis Ababa and Mogadishu, driven by a deal inked in January between Ethiopia and Somaliland, a self-proclaimed republic in northern Somalia.
Somaliland broke away from Somalia in 1991 but remains internationally unrecognised despite its claim to independence. It is in a strategic location close to the Gulf of Aden and the southern mouth of the Red Sea.
Ethiopia announced its formal recognition of the Republic of Somaliland in return for 20 kilometers of Red Sea coastline access for its naval forces, on a 50-year lease.
Following this, at Somalia's request, the Arab League held an emergency ministerial session, reaffirming that Somaliland remains an integral part of Somalia and unequivocally rejecting the January agreement.
The Arab League requested Algeria, as the only Arab member of the UN Security Council, to “mobilise necessary support to issue necessary resolutions affirming the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia”.
The acting special representative of the UN Secretary General, James Swan, expressed concern to the council about the agreement, which he said has “created tensions in the Horn of Africa at a time when the region faces other crises”.
“I recall that the Security Council has repeatedly affirmed respect for the sovereignty, territorial integrity and unity of Somalia,” Mr Swan said.
“I encourage Somalia and Ethiopia to resolve this matter peacefully in accordance with these principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity, as enshrined in the United Nations Charter and international law.”
US deputy ambassador to the UN Robert Wood said Washington remains deeply concerned about political tension between Ethiopia and Somalia, and the negative effect it is having on shared security interests.
“We join the AU and other international partners in reiterating our support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia," Mr Wood said. "Diplomatic dialogue is the way to de-escalate tensions, and the only way forward."
On June 6, the UN General Assembly elected Somalia as a non-permanent member of the Security Council for 2025-2026, representing the eastern Africa region.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
Scoreline
Man Utd 2 Pogba 27', Martial 49'
Everton 1 Sigurdsson 77'
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
