A group of five nations, including the United States, Britain, and Turkey, has reaffirmed their support for Somalia’s sovereignty and urged dialogue to reduce tensions in the Horn of Africa region.
At their seventh meeting in Washington on Thursday, the Somalia Quint group states – also including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates – reiterated the need to de-escalate regional tensions through dialogue, including Turkish-sponsored mediation efforts.
Representatives from Somalia’s government also participated in the meeting.
This July and August, Turkey hosted mediation talks between Somalia and its neighbor Ethiopia to address regional tensions, which escalated following Ethiopia’s agreement with Somalia’s breakaway region of Somaliland in January.
The Quint states also discussed the importance of focusing on shared economic and security objectives, particularly to counter terrorism threats in the Horn of Africa.
They expressed support for Somalia’s efforts to build capable and accountable security forces and defense institutions.
In a joint statement, the Quint states agreed to improve coordination of international training to assist Somalia in developing a long-term training capability.
They also discussed the urgent need to finalize plans for the new African Union Stabilization and Support Mission in Somalia following the end of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS).
The partners emphasized the importance of broad stakeholder input into the planning process and stressed the urgency of finalizing funding options for the upcoming peacekeeping mission.
Meanwhile, China also called on all parties in Somalia to resolve differences through dialogue and urged continued funding for the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia.