ANKARA — Somalia’s breakaway region of Somaliland warned on Wednesday against any deployment of Turkish forces in its maritime zones ahead of a Turkish parliament vote that would authorize sending naval forces to the coast of Somalia.
“The Government of the Republic of Somaliland vehemently rejects any potential deployment of Turkish naval forces within Somaliland’s recognized maritime zones,” an official statement by Somaliland said. Somaliland declared itself independent from Somalia in 1991 but doesn’t enjoy international recognition.
“The reported intention of Turkish naval forces to operate in Somaliland maritime zones constitutes a grave violation of international law and Somaliland’s sovereign rights,” the statement added.
The statement came after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan last Friday asked the parliament to vote on a two-year mandate allowing the government to deploy Turkish military forces to Somali regions “to be jointly determined by the two countries, including Somalia’s maritime zones,” Turkey’s state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
The mandate aims to support “the efforts to ensure Somalia’s security against terrorism, piracy, illegal fishing, all kinds of smuggling and other threats,” according to Anadolu.
The Turkish parliament, originally scheduled to recess on July 1, postponed its break to an unspecified date last month and is now expected to vote on the mandate before it goes to summer recess.
Turkey’s main opposition Republican People’s Party announced it was having reservations about the mandate on the grounds that the deployment of Turkish troops in Somali waters could pit Turkey against other regional countries. But the mandate is expected to pass with the support of Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development Party members and their allies.
The mandate comes as part of the Defense and Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement Turkey and Somalia signed in February amid lingering tensions in the Horn of Africa. Following the signing of the deal, Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said Turkey would protect Somali waters for 10 years.
Somalia threatened its western neighbor Ethiopia with war after the latter signed a deal with Somaliland that would reportedly grant landlocked Ethiopia access to the Red Sea via Somaliland in return for Addis Ababa’s recognition of the breakaway region.
While backing Somalia’s territorial integrity, Turkey has been supporting direct negotiations between Mogadishu and its breakaway region Somaliland for the settlement of the conflict. Ankara also mediates between Somalia and Ethiopia. The two countries are expected to hold a second round of direct talks in Ankara in September, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said after the first-round talks, which were held in Turkey’s capital earlier this month.
In addition to its naval forces, Ankara is also planning to dispatch a drilling ship to Somali waters for the exploration of hydrocarbon resources, Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said last week.
Somalia has been the springboard of Turkey’s Africa outreach, which is aimed at deepening economic and military influence in the region. The country is home to the largest Turkish military airbase abroad, where the Turkish military trains Somali troops as the African country has been embattled with an Islamist resurgence for more than a decade.
