On January 23, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud spoke to Al Jazeera and warned that Ethiopia should not try to honor a controversial memorandum of understanding (MOU) it signed with the breakaway region of Somaliland on New Year’s Day.
Under the preliminary agreement, Somaliland would lease landlocked Ethiopia 20 kilometers (12 miles) of its coast around the port of Berbera for commercial and military purposes for 50 years. In exchange, Ethiopia would give Somaliland an undisclosed stake in state ownership of Ethiopia Airlines and, according to the president of Somaliland, Muse Bihi Abdiformally recognize the independence of the region of Somalia.
Ethiopia has refuted Abdi’s interpretation of the non-binding agreement and has instead said it only agreed undertake an “in-depth assessment to take a position on Somaliland’s efforts to gain recognition.”
However, Mohamud made it clear that he considers the signing of the “illegal ME” as a declaration of war, regardless of the details of the obligations it imposes on each party, and has urged his compatriots to “prepare for the defense of our homeland.” . ”.
However, he extended an olive branch to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in his interview with Al Jazeera, stating that Mogadishu is willing to enter into a fair negotiation process led by Somalia to allow Ethiopia to lease a port on the Sea Red legally.
After a devastating civil war and the violent overthrow of the authoritarian government of then Somali President Siad Barre, Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in May 1991, but has so far failed to achieve international recognition.
In the wake of the New Year agreement, a plethora of global actors – including the United Nations, the European Union, the United States, the Arab League, the African Union (AU) and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) – have reaffirmed its unequivocal support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia. Some have gone a step further and rightly condemned Ethiopia’s clandestine actions.
“The memorandum constitutes a blatant attack on Arab, African and international principles and a clear violation of international law,” Arab League Secretary General Ahmed Aboul Gheit said at an emergency ministerial-level meeting on January 17.
However, Moussa Faki Mahamat, president of the African Union Commission, has left the situation between Somalia and Ethiopia aside.
Seemingly totally averse to the truth, Africa’s top diplomat on January 4 called for “calm and mutual respect to reduce the simmering tension between Ethiopia and Somalia.”
It recognized the need to respect the “unity, territorial integrity and full sovereignty of all member states of the African Union,” including Somalia and Ethiopia, and urged the “two brotherly countries to engage without delay in a negotiation process to resolve their differences.”
Mahamat’s frankly empty statement was a big mistake.
When he should have taken a firm stand against Ethiopia’s unprovoked hostility towards Somalia, he chose to resort to useless diplomatic language, effectively placating Abiy.
And the Ethiopian leader clearly took note of this official adaptation of the AU.
On January 27, the ruling Ethiopian Prosperity Party, of which Abiy is president, passed a resolution pledging to transform the disruptive MoU into a “practical agreement.”
This is classic Abiy.
Since taking office in April 2018, he has come to symbolize the worst excesses of unbridled and unscrupulous leadership in the 21st century.
He has presided over a disastrous civil war in the Tigray region and a horrific series of human rights abuses.
Amnesty International has accused Ethiopian security forces of committing serious human rights violations, including extrajudicial killings, mass arrests, mass rapes and ethnic cleansing.
During his nearly six years in power, Abiy has proven to be a confrontational and reckless leader who has no desire to follow the rules, either at home or abroad.
Last year, he caused significant unrest in the region when he described Ethiopia’s landlocked status as an “existential crisis” and promised he would secure access to a port on the Red Sea, either through negotiations or by force.
We have since learned that he would also be willing to secure a port through a controversial deal that would exacerbate instability in an already fragile neighboring state and stoke further conflict in the restive Horn of Africa region.
Although he has backed down from the threat of using military action to obtain a port, it is evident that he is still determined to do everything possible to secure a share of the prime real estate in the Gulf of Aden.
Still, Mahamat tried to frame Ethiopia’s blatant aggression against an AU member state as a routine disagreement between nations and a minor misunderstanding.
There are no differences to resolve or issues to negotiate on the part of Somalia, as far as the illegal MOU is concerned.
The current situation in Somaliland is well known in Africa. As it is officially still a region of Somalia and not a globally recognized sovereign state, Somaliland has no right to make any deals with other nations.
Abiy knew this well before January 1, but decided to defy the rules and demonstrate his country’s military prowess anyway.
In this context, Mahamat’s response is deeply disappointing and can be perceived as a seal of approval to Ethiopia’s blatant aggression against an African nation.
The AU’s top diplomat knows without a doubt that the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding violates several provisions of the United Nations Charter and the Constitutive Act of the African Union and that the AU Peace and Security Council is obliged to take action “where the national independence and sovereignty of a Member State is threatened by acts of aggression.”
However, Mahamat did not mention any of this in his statement on the situation. Instead, he called on Somalia and Ethiopia to “exercise restraint, reduce tensions and engage in meaningful dialogue to find a peaceful solution to the matter, in the spirit of African solutions to African problems.”
Let us be clear: turning a blind eye to clear and potentially catastrophic illegalities by one African nation against another cannot be considered an “African solution.”
The AU has at its disposal a series of treaties, conventions, protocols and charters to monitor errant countries. It has the capacity to confront countries that violate international laws – especially stubborn serial offenders like Ethiopia – and should do so regularly.
In a speech at the opening of the 47th ordinary session of the Council of Permanent Representatives of the AU, Mahamat said that the Russian invasion of Ukraine and Israel’s war against Gaza have led to “humanitarian tragedies of unprecedented magnitude, characterized for a blatant disregard of international law”. and international humanitarian law.
Then, unfortunately, he offered a strange, naïve and frightening suggestion on how Africans can resolve similar conflicts within the continent.
“The only resource that Africa has in the face of the challenges of our time is its unity and solidarity,” he said.
According to Mahamat, former Prime Minister of Chad, this is how we can resolve the conflicts in Sudan and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
This is supposedly how we could regulate leaders whose nefarious ambitions rival those of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
This is simply incorrect and unhelpful.
African unity and solidarity – or whatever these concepts represent in Mahamat’s imagination – are clearly not the panacea for the rampant anarchy in the Horn of Africa.
An unwavering and indiscriminate dedication to the implementation of international law is what will safeguard peace across the continent. Therefore, Abiy’s countless transgressions should serve as motivation to turn the AU into a highly responsive and efficient organization.
Africa must change the way it regulates extreme impunity and views conflict resolution. Let us end the deceptions about “brotherhood or sisterhood” and focus instead on the timely application of the rule of law. Abiy is currently testing Africa’s resolve to protect Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The AU must censure Ethiopia and uphold the true spirit of international law.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial position of Al Jazeera.
