NAIROBI, Kenya, Dec, 13 – Somaliland President Musa Bihi arrived in Kenya Sunday afternoon ahead of a historic meeting with President Uhuru Kenyatta.
The meeting will be the first a leader of the self-declared nation has had with a Kenyan President since 2006 when then Somaliland President Kahin Riyale met with former President Mwai Kibaki.
President Bihi was received by the Chief administrative Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ababu Namwamba and Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Peter Munya.
Bihi will Monday hold talks with President Kenyatta at state house, Nairobi where they are expected to discuss issues of mutual interests.
But what is at stake?
-Bolstering Bilateral Relations-
Though Kenya does not have a diplomatic presence in Somaliland a statement from the ministry of foreign affairs said,” we take cognisance of the political and economic stability of the region and is keen to enhance and broaden trade in goods and services as well as investment as the cornerstone for long term development cooperation with the region.”
The meeting between the two leaders has been in the works for almost a month, Shahidi News has established.
On November 25, Somaliland’s Interior Minister Kahin Ahmed arrived in the country’s capital on a working visit.
He was received by the head of the Somaliland liaison office in Nairobi Ambassador Bashe Omar.
The Interior Minister is said to have met several key government officials in anticipation of the meeting with President Kenyatta.
Kenya has described Somaliland as an important partner in the Horn of Africa region in the fight against terrorism particularly the Al-Qaida linked Al-Shabaab terror group.
-Kenya-Somalia-Somaliland Relations-
Four days later on November 29, the Federal Republic of Somalia under President Mohammed Abdullah alias Farmaajo, directed that the Kenyan envoy be expelled from Mogadishu and vice versa amid allegations of “interference” in its electoral process particularly in Jubaland, as it called for more consultations.
Somalia alleged that due to the interference, Jubaland President Ahmed Islam Madobe had reneged on an election agreement struck on September 17.
Kenya however in a rejoinder denied the allegations terming them as “unsubstantiated” as it called for Somalia to remain true to its political commitments and avoid distracting actions.
The diplomatic row between Nairobi and Mogadishu has been seen by diplomatic observers as one of the reasons Kenya has ‘renewed’ relations with Somaliland despite not officially recognising it as a sovereign country.
The Federal Government of Somalia considers Somaliland to be part of its territory and among its other 5 autonomous regions.
Mogadishu and Hargeisa have in recent years engaged in a war of words particularly when the latter signed deals with international countries to manage the contested port of Berbera.
The Federal government of Somalia at the time said that Somaliland did not have the authority to enter into international agreements with any country.
This year however during the African Union summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, the two heads of state are said to have met in a meeting planned by Prime Minister Ahmed Abiy whose government has worked closely with Somaliland.
The relationship between the two remains cordial with Somaliland saying it remains open “to sincere dialogue with the Federal Government of Somalia.”
-Calls for Statehood-
The anticipated meeting between President Kenyatta and President Bihi is also expected to center around Somaliland’s call for international recognition as a sovereign state.
With Kenya recently elected as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council after it defeated Djibouti for a seat designated for African countries, Hargeisa now more than ever seeks Kenya’s help to advance its cause.
President Kenyatta is meanwhile said to have delegated the matter to key government officials to assess the impact of pushing the motion at the UN Security Council.
Bihi in his quest is said to be planning a separate meeting with the AU High Representative for Infrastructure Development, Raila Odinga who enjoys close relations with AU officials in Addis Ababa.
Kenyan Members of Parliament have also in recent years travelled to Hargeisa where they met Somaliland Government officials and vice versa.
As stakes remain high, this is the closest, Somaliland feels it has come in decades to advance its goals for achieving statehood and international recognition.
Nairobi is among 27 other cities where Somaliland has established foreign Liaison offices according to the head of the Nairobi office ambassador Bashe Omar.
-A Sovereign Somaliland? –
Somaliland, which has been described to be part of, “A world in Limbo” and seats on the coast of the Gulf of Aden declared independence in 1991 following the overthrow of military dictator Siad Barre.
Barre in the late 1980s led a military crackdown on the Hargeisa based Somali National Movement (SNM) killing thousands of people during the secessionist struggle.
Somalia President Farmaajo earlier this year described the tragic incident during the 1980s and 90s meted by Siad Barre as, “a dark chapter” in the history of Somaliland.
He said, “What is needed is acknowledgement in seeking forgiveness for the bad things that have happened, to correct the dark chapter in our history which means to express regret for the suffering in the north.”
A former British Somaliland protectorate, during the height of the “end colonialism wave” of the 1960s, it was briefly an independent country recognised by several countries including the United Nations.
Shortly after, Somaliland through its legislature passed a law approving a union with Italian-Somalia, present day Somalia. A decision it says it has regretted ever since.
Winds of optimism however seem to be sweeping through Somaliland that after decades of alienation, its President, a retired air-force pilot would fly the country to the much-anticipated international recognition it seeks and be declared a sovereign state.
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