Ethiopia signed a naval military base deal with the separatist Somaliland region on January 1 this year, leasing 20km (12 miles) of coastline in Lughaya area for 50 years. The deal also reportedly links the sea access with Ethiopia’s formal recognition of Somaliland. The specific details of the MoU have not been published, but this is an unprecedented move by Ethiopia as it violates the UN and AU Charters…
The AU Chairperson refrained from condemning Ethiopia’s action but said it is imperative to respect unity, territorial integrity and full sovereignty of all AU member states. Somalia accused Ethiopia of aggression, and of undermining its territorial integrity. Somalia’s Parliament immediately passed a law that nullified the agreement. Ethiopia appears undeterred and followed a week later by a military cooperation discussion with Somaliland region which has sparked fears of a military confrontation with Somalia.
In October last year, Ethiopian PM Abiy Ahmed warned that his country’s existence was tied to its access to the Red Sea, and that it was determined to get its wish. This alarmed the region, with Eritrea responding that it would defend its territory at all times. Ethiopia had access to the seaports of Massawa and Assab until 1991 when Eritrea which, until then was part of Ethiopia, gained its independence. It has since used Djibouti for 90 per cent of its commercial maritime activities. It has also signed an agreement with Kenya for the use of Lamu port once the Lapsset project to link its border with road and rail is completed. In 2019, Ethiopia bought a 19 per cent stake in the Port of Berbera with Somaliland retaining 30 per cent and Dubai’s DP World holding 51 per cent in a deal where it will manage the port for 30 years.
