Egypt – Egypt announced, yesterday, Wednesday, the signing of a military cooperation protocol with Somalia, stressing support for its sovereignty and rejecting any interference in its internal affairs.
This came during a ceremony attended by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and his Somali counterpart Hassan Sheikh Mahmoud during a meeting in Cairo, according to a statement by the Egyptian presidency.
The Egyptian presidency reported in the same statement that President Sisi “received his Somali counterpart at Al-Ittihadiya Palace (east of the capital, Cairo), who is on an official visit to Egypt for several days.”
During a discussion session with Sheikh Mahmoud, Sisi stressed “Egypt’s position in support of the unity and sovereignty of Somalia over its lands, and in rejecting any interference in its internal affairs.”
The two presidents welcomed “the mutual steps between the two countries to deepen bilateral cooperation, including the launch of a direct flight line between Cairo and Mogadishu, the opening of the Egyptian embassy in its new headquarters in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, as well as the signing of a military cooperation protocol between the two countries,” according to the statement.
For his part, the Somali president expressed his country’s keenness to “further strengthen economic, security and political ties with Egypt during the coming period,” according to the same statement.
The statement pointed out that “the two presidents agreed to intensify consultation and coordination during the coming period, to continue working to establish security and stability in the Horn of Africa region.”
Following the talks, the Egyptian and Somali presidents witnessed the “signing ceremony of the military cooperation protocol between the two countries,” without further details about its content.
On Tuesday, the Somali president arrived in Cairo on a visit “aimed at discussing ways to enhance historical relations between the two countries and defence and security cooperation between Somalia and Egypt,” according to the Somali News Agency.
Tensions prevail between the two neighbors, Somalia and Ethiopia, as a result of the latter signing a memorandum of understanding with the separatist region of “Somaliland” on January 1, paving the way for the establishment of an Ethiopian military base and the leasing of the port of Berbera on the Red Sea for 50 years.
Somalia rejected the agreement, considering it “illegal, a threat to good neighborliness, and a violation of its sovereignty,” and stressed that there was “no room for mediation” in the dispute with Ethiopia unless it withdrew from the agreement.
The Arab League and a large number of its members, including Egypt, announced their rejection of the agreement and their affirmation of Somalia’s sovereignty over all its territories.
Anatolia
#Egypt #signs #military #cooperation #protocol #Somalia #affirms #support #sovereignty
2024-08-15 06:56:50
