Mogadishu (PP Editorial) — The former Somali Prime Minister Dr Abdiweli Mohamed Ali recently stated in a speech that the United States “is interested in the port of Berbera”. A similar opinion was expressed by Mohamed Abdirizak Mahmoud Abubakar, who was a former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Somalia. Both of them indicated that they do not fully understand the fact that the United States does not wish to entangle itself in a country that has suffered prolonged conflict and went through state collapse in 1991.
The United States once had a small military base in Eritrea when the latter was still part of Ethiopia. It was known as Kagnew Station. One of the reasons the United States no longer needed the base was the advancement of satellite technology, which facilitated intelligence gathering. At present, the United States has a military base in Djibouti, a politically stable country. In Africa, the United States also maintains small bases in Ghana, Senegal and Gabon. In Somalia, the United States has presence in the South and cannot act against the policies of the Federal Government of Somalia. It is worth noting that the United States strongly opposed the maritime memorandum of understanding signed between the self-declared secessionist administration of Somaliland and Ethiopia in January 2024.
Recently, Marco Rubio, the U.S. Secretary of State, stated that his country’s influence had been used in a manner contrary to American interests. The dissolution of USAID and the Voice of America (VOA) was among the measures taken by President Donald Trump’s administration after realising that China had surpassed the United States in direct investment in Africa between 2013 and 2022.
The British government has published a statement on its website that can be interpreted as recognising Somaliland as a state independent of Somalia. This constitutes a violation of international law by the British government. The Berbera Corridor project, which Britain had intended to help Ethiopia reduce its dependence on Djibouti Ports, has now been discontinued after Ethiopia declared that it does not want a port from which to import goods but rather a port it owns. The British government also opposed the memorandum of understanding signed between Muse Bihi and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in 2024.
It is the responsibility of the Federal Government of Somalia to address the violations committed against Somalia’s sovereignty by Britain and Taiwan. The Federal Government of Somalia successfully compelled Ethiopia to withdraw from the illegal maritime MoU. The Federal Government of Somalia must also hold Britain and Taiwan accountable for violating the political and territorial integrity of Somalia.
© Puntland Post, 2025
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