Egypt’s second shipment of arms to Somalia since August grabs the attention of int’l press

Egypt’s recent delivery of arms to Somalia has caught the attention of the international press, with Reuters writing that the move is “likely to stoke further friction between the two countries and Ethiopia” amid Ethiopia’s potential port land lease agreement with the breakaway Somaliland region that would see Ethiopia possibly recognize Somaliland as independent.

The details: The shipment — which also received ink from Bloomberg — which includes anti-aircraft guns and artillery and was dispatched by warship, is Egypt’s second delivery of weapons to Somalia since the two countries signed a joint security pact in August. Somaliland’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, for its part, reportedly expressed concerns that the weapons may fall into the wrong hands, like those of Al Shabab.

Tensions with Ethiopia are at a high: The news comes as tension between Egypt and Ethiopia ratchets up amid Ethiopia’s continued work on its Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Egypt recently spoke out against the country’s unilateral moves to fill the dam — which the government says is an existential threat to our water security — in the UN Security Council.