{"id":612771,"date":"2026-06-04T03:25:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-04T03:25:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/?p=612771"},"modified":"2026-06-04T03:25:00","modified_gmt":"2026-06-04T03:25:00","slug":"us-formally-rejects-somaliland-sovereignty-in-blow-to-israel-3","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/?p=612771","title":{"rendered":"US Formally Rejects Somaliland Sovereignty In Blow To Israel"},"content":{"rendered":"

US Formally Rejects Somaliland Sovereignty In Blow To Israel<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Via Middle East Eye<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

The\u00a0US\u00a0has reaffirmed \u201cthe sovereignty and territorial integrity\u201d of Somalia, in a move seen as a blow to Somaliland, the breakaway region recently recognized by\u00a0Israel\u00a0and close to the\u00a0United Arab Emirates.\u00a0In a\u00a0report<\/a>\u00a0to Congress on \u201cPotential Areas for Improved United States Engagement with Somaliland\u201d, the US State Department stated that Somaliland was included in the Federal Republic of Somalia<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWithin that framework, the United States maintains a positive, constructive relationship with Somaliland and continues to explore additional opportunities for engagement with Somaliland authorities,\u201d the report says.\u00a0Israel became the first country in the world to\u00a0formally recognize<\/a>\u00a0Somaliland on December 26 last year.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

\"\"
Reuters\/MEE:\u00a0Somaliland military armed vehicles take part in a parade during the self-declared Independence Day, with celebrations commemorating their 1991 breakaway from Somalia, on 18 May 2026<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

The month before, Somaliland President Abdirahman Abdullahi Mohamed secretly visited Israel, meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other \u201ctop officials\u201d, according to multiple sources in Somalia and Somaliland.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Those other officials included Mossad chief David Barnea and Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, who visited Somaliland immediately after Israel formally recognised the former British colony\u2019s sovereignty.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n

‘Recognition is bigger than anything else. Do you have an alternative for us?’<\/p>\n

–\u00a0Rooble Mohamed, Somaliland government adviser<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Somaliland has since recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, establishing an embassy there as meetings between Somaliland and Israeli ministers have continued and pro-Israel figures in the media have taken up the cause of independence for the breakaway Somali region.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Jake Wallis Simons, former editor of the Jewish Chronicle, and Andrew Fox, an associate fellow at the right-wing Henry Jackson Society, were flown out to Somaliland for the May 18th self-declared independence day celebrations in Hargeisa, the region\u2019s capital. Both men are ardent supporters of Israel. The UK\u2019s former defence minister, Conservative MP Gavin Williamson, another keen supporter of Somaliland, was also part of the trip.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Somaliland is hoping that Israel\u2019s recognition will be followed by the UAE, with Ethiopia, India, Cyprus and Georgia also in its sights.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Trump not expected to recognize Somaliland<\/h2>\n

A congressional source told Middle East Eye they did not expect US President Donald Trump\u2019s administration to recognise Somaliland. Though lobbyists, including former Trump officials Tibor Nagy and Peter Pham, had raised the hopes of Somalilanders over US recognition, \u201cthere was never a sign that the president would go through with it,\u201d the source said.<\/p>\n

Trump has persistently singled out Somalia and Somali Americans for abuse during his second term in office. He has\u00a0referred\u00a0<\/a>to Somalis as \u201clow IQ people\u201d and said that all Somalis are \u201ccrooked as hell\u201d. He has\u00a0said\u00a0<\/a>that Somali American congresswoman Ilhan Omar \u201cis garbage\u201d, and that \u201cher friends are garbage\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A Somali analyst and policy adviser, who could not be named as he works with officials in both Somalia and Somaliland, told MEE he thought the report to Congress was \u201ca consequential announcement that may effectively close the door on any lingering hopes of US recognition for Somaliland\u201d<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\n

The #UnitedStates<\/a> affirms its recognition of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of #Somalia<\/a>, which encompasses the region of Somaliland.<\/p>\n

Furthermore, this report emphasizes the challenges associated with investing in #Somaliland<\/a> due to its\u2026 pic.twitter.com\/j7uPDiN0up<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 SMS Somali TV (@SMSSomaliTV1) June 1, 2026<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\u201cFrom a strategic perspective, why settle for part of the cake when the whole cake remains within reach,\u201d he said, referring to US ambitions across the whole of Somalia.<\/p>\n

Asked if he agreed with this analysis, Rooble Mohamed, who is a consultant for the Somaliland communications ministry, told MEE: \u201cThe United States does not currently recognize Somaliland, so unless there is a formal recognition, such a statement is the reality for now. \u201cThe US does not officially recognize Taiwan as a sovereign state but has its own arrangements with it as a separate entity from China. This proposal seems to be the same.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n

Somaliland’s strategic importance for Israel, UAE and US<\/h2>\n

Somaliland and its location on the Red Sea have become more strategically important to the US, Israel and its allies with the rise of the Houthis in Yemen, the war on Iran and threats to shipping in one of the world\u2019s busiest sea lanes.\u00a0After it entered the war in\u00a0Yemen<\/a>, the UAE began building a\u00a0ring of bases\u00a0<\/a>to control the Gulf of Aden.\u00a0<\/p>\n

This was done with the help of Israeli military and intelligence officers, even before relations between the two countries were normalised as part of the Abraham Accords in 2020. Berbera, Somaliland\u2019s main port, was part of this circle of bases, which is no longer fully intact following the rift between the UAE and its coalition partner in Yemen,\u00a0Saudi Arabia<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The State Department\u2019s report to Congress is clear on this matter. \u201cSomaliland\u2019s strategic location near Yemen and the Bab al-Mandab Strait positions it as a potential partner on shared security interests, including freedom of commercial and military navigation from the Red Sea to the Indian Ocean,\u201d<\/strong> it says.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

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via BBC<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

<\/p>\n

Israeli and Somaliland officials are in talks about the establishment of an Israeli base at Berbera. The UAE\u2019s DP World also runs its own port there, which is co-owned\u00a0by the British government<\/a>\u00a0through its foreign investment arm.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSomaliland authorities have encouraged US investment in minerals and outlined priorities in infrastructure, trade, and economic growth,\u201d the report to Congress says.\u00a0Somaliland officials have said their soil is rich in lithium, coltan and other sought-after resources<\/strong>, and they have suggested that US access to these riches could come alongside recognition<\/strong>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The State Department report also mentions the \u201congoing development\u201d of Berbera\u2019s airport and seaports \u201cinto a trade and transportation hub for Somaliland and landlocked Ethiopia\u201d, saying this could \u201ccreate increased opportunities\u201d for the US. However, the report concludes, \u201cregional security concerns and the dispute over Somaliland\u2019s status, including its refusal to cooperate with national authorities, present challenges for investment, banking, and trade.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Asked if he thought Israel\u2019s recognition was doing Somaliland more harm than good, given the\u00a0genocide in Gaza<\/a>\u00a0and Israel\u2019s plummeting popularity worldwide and particularly in the Muslim world, Rooble Mohamed said the government in Hargeisa had \u201cno alternatives\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cRecognition is bigger than anything else. Do you have an alternative for us? We are one of the Muslim countries of the world, I don\u2019t think we are different. I think it\u2019s normal to have a relationship with Israel,\u201d Mohamed said. \u201cIt does not mean the\u00a0Palestinians<\/a>\u00a0are our enemies.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Tyler Durden<\/a><\/span>
\nWed, 06\/03\/2026 – 23:25<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

US Formally Rejects Somaliland Sovereignty In Blow To Israel Via Middle East Eye The\u00a0US\u00a0has reaffirmed \u201cthe sovereignty and territorial integrity\u201d of Somalia, in a move seen as a blow to Somaliland, the breakaway region recently recognized by\u00a0Israel\u00a0and close to the\u00a0United Arab Emirates.\u00a0In a\u00a0report\u00a0to Congress on \u201cPotential Areas for Improved United States Engagement with Somaliland\u201d, the… Continue reading US Formally Rejects Somaliland Sovereignty In Blow To Israel<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":612755,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[20,23],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-612771","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economic-empowerment","category-national-security","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612771","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=612771"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612771\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/612755"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=612771"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=612771"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buglecall.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=612771"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}