Somalia’s government on Tuesday said it would recall its ambassador to Ethiopia for urgent consultations following a new port deal entered into between Addis Ababa and the breakaway region of Somaliland which has repeatedly said it is an independent nation.
Prime Minister of Somalia, Hamza Abdi Barre also declared that his country would defend its territory by “all legal means possible” following the pact on Monday.
The landlocked Ethiopia signed the agreement which grants it access to use the Red Sea port of Berbera, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s office said.
“This has been now agreed with our Somaliland brothers and an MoU (Memorandum of Understanding) has been signed today,” Abiy said at the signing ceremony with Somaliland President Muse Bihi Abdi in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.
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President Abdi said as part of the agreement, Ethiopia would also be the first country to recognise Somaliland as an independent nation in due course.
The MoU paves the way to allowing Ethiopia to have commercial marine operations in the region by giving it access to a leased military base on the Red Sea, Abiy’s National Security Adviser Redwan Hussien said.
The government however insists it was appealing to international bodies including the United Nations and the African Union to stand with Somalia.
“Somaliland is part of Somalia under the Somali constitution so Somalia finds this step to be a clear violation against its sovereignty and unity,” the Somali cabinet said in a statement.
It said the memorandum of understanding signed in Addis Ababa on Monday was “null and void with no legal basis and Somalia will not accept it.
“In response to this, the Somali government has recalled its ambassador in Ethiopia for consultation,” the statement said.
The government also said it was appealing to the United Nations, African Union, the Arab League and regional East African grouping IGAD among others “to stand with the right for Somalia to defend its sovereignty and force Ethiopia to adhere to international laws”.
In an address to the nation, Barre called for the people of Somalia to stay calm.
“I want to assure you that we are committed to defending the country, we will not allow an inch of land, sea and skies to be violated,” he said.
“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.”
Somaliland has not gained widespread international recognition despite declaring autonomy from Somalia in 1991.
