Western newspapers: Ethiopia's move to acquire port destabilizes Horn of Africa Current Affairs News

Western newspapers are interested in the agreement granting territory Somaliland The deal, which cuts off Ethiopia's Red Sea outlet, has angered the country of Somalia, which refuses to recognize the independence of the separatist region considered part of its territory, meaning geopolitical troubles in the Horn of Africa are getting off to a flammable start. a new Year.

British magazine The Economist and French magazine Lacroix and Le Point discuss one aspect of the issue in which Ethiopia benefits by gaining a seaport it has long sought and nearly went to war with. Somaliland has also gained recognition, bringing it closer to emerging from the isolation from which it has found no way out for decades, but on the other hand, it has caused anger in Somalia, anxiety in Djibouti, and fear and relief in Eritrea.

According to The Economist magazine, the Prime Minister of Ethiopia Abiy Ahmed He described the agreement signed with Somaliland President Moussa Bihi Abdi as a diplomatic victory that fulfills Ethiopia's decades-long pursuit of direct access to sea without resorting to force. We have achieved our wish to reach the Red Sea. “We do not intend to use force to coerce anyone. “

Enter the sea in exchange for confession

According to Lacroix, Abiy Ahmed defended his country's right to access the Red Sea, using aggressive rhetoric on the issue and even mentioning armed intervention, according to his national security adviser Redwan Hussein said “Ethiopia will have access to leased military bases in the Red Sea” as part of the deal. “

For Somaliland's leaders, the agreement represents a breakthrough in their three-year quest to gain international recognition. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the region, which is recognized only by Ethiopia and Taiwan in the world, confirmed that the agreement “guarantees access to the Red Sea for Ethiopia and its naval forces in exchange for official recognition of the Republic of Somalia.” Somaliland, which is important for our country diplomatic steps.

Somaliland may also acquire a stake in Ethiopian Airlines, Africa's largest airline.

In 1991, Somaliland fell into chaos that it has not yet completely emerged from and unilaterally declared independence from Somalia.

Although it has its own institutions and currency issues, its independence is not recognized by the international community.

Somaliland hopes the rest of Africa will follow Ethiopia's example and recognize it, as the African Union is headquartered in Addis Ababa and Abiy Ahmed has close ties with Gulf powers, especially the United Arab Emirates. Some foreign diplomats suspect this may have played a role. It played a role in brokering the deal because of its close ties to the Somaliland government.

According to The Economist, some of these diplomats theorized that Abiy Ahmed’s announcement of the agreement came as he hosted Sudan’s most prominent warlord, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (commonly known as Hemedti), very close to the United Arab Emirates.

Diplomats believe the establishment of an Ethiopian military base in Somaliland would be the latest step in a plan to secure the UAE's sphere of influence across the Gulf and the Horn of Africa.

sparking tensions in the region

However, according to “Le Point”, the sudden agreement threatens to reignite tensions in the Horn of Africa, as the Somali government, which has never recognized Somaliland's independence, responded in a statement that “Somaliland is a region in Africa. part of the horn”. Somalia according to the constitution, therefore Somalia… This action is considered a flagrant violation of its sovereignty and unity. “

Somalia calls on the United Nations, the African Union, the Arab League and the East African regional organization IGAD to support Somalia, defend its sovereignty and force Ethiopia to comply with international law.

and even islamic youth movement relatedAl QaedaThe group, which has led a bloody insurgency against Somalia's federal government since 2007, criticized the deal and Abiy Ahmed's “expansionist agenda,” Le Point reported.

Abdikarim Hussein Guled, the Special Representative of the President of Somalia in Somaliland, criticized the Ethiopian government's actions on Monday, saying that what happened “blatantly ignored international standards and legal frameworks and blatantly violated Somalia's territorial sovereignty.” It also warned that the agreement was a “unilateral act.” “It puts regional stability at risk.”

Western diplomat: The world lives in an era where if a person is cruel and reckless, no one can defeat him

Lacroix said the deal could destabilize the entire region and particularly undermine potential negotiations between Somalia and Somaliland, especially since the Somali authorities and the breakaway Somaliland region announced last week that Djibouti President Ismail This is the first time since the last negotiations failed in 2020 that negotiations were held under the good offices of Al Omar Guelleh.

The Economist concluded that the agreement is likely to cause dissatisfaction with Egypt and Saudi Arabia, which do not view the UAE's pursuit of regional hegemony, while Djibouti, which will lose Ethiopian trade flows, will not be happy about it, but Eritrea will. The purpose of coming to Abiy had been achieved and one could breathe a sigh of relief without having to use weapons, but the possibility of the Ethiopian navy showing up on one's doorstep, no matter how remote, was not to be welcomed.

The Economist warned that Ethiopia's move could destabilize the already volatile Horn of Africa region, but it chose to end its report with comments from a Western diplomat who said: “The world lives in a In an era where, she said, “he is cruel and reckless, and no one can stand up to him,” it's a lesson. The magazine said Abiy Ahmed learned this early on.