A new defense partnership with Somalia: Somalia’s cabinet approved a mutual defense agreement with Egypt during its extraordinary meeting on Friday, Somali state television said in a post on X. This comes shortly after President Abdel Fattah El Sisi said that Egypt “will not allow any threat to Somalia.”

(Tap or click the headline above to read this story with all of the links to our background as well as external sources.)

In context: Somalia and Ethiopia have been rowing for months after Ethiopia inked an agreement in early January with breakaway region Somaliland, granting it 50-year access to Somaliland’s Berbera port in exchange for eventual recognition and an undisclosed stake in Ethiopian Airlines. Somalia was quick to snub the accord, labeling the move as “null and void.”

Things are tense between the two sides: Back in April, Somalia expelled two Ethiopian ambassadors and shut down two Ethiopian consulates over the agreement. It also recalled its ambassador to Addis Ababa.

Tags: