Somalia said it was expelling Ethiopia’s ambassador, closing two Ethiopian consulates and recalling its own ambassador to Addis Ababa amid a dispute over Ethiopia’s plan to lease coastline in the breakaway region of Somaliland.
Ethiopian foreign ministry spokesperson Nebiyu Tedla said Ethiopia did not have any information on the matter, which was first officially announced by Somalia’s prime minister’s office.
“This follows … the actions of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia which infringe upon Somalia’s sovereignty and internal affairs,” Somalia’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
Somalia has given Ethiopia’s ambassador 72 hours to leave the country, and ordered the closure of the Ethiopian consulates in Somaliland and the semi-autonomous region of Puntland, the foreign ministry said.
Two Somali officials said the moves were linked to a dispute over a memorandum of understanding landlocked Ethiopia agreed to on Jan. 1 to lease 20 km (12 miles) of coastline in Somaliland – a part of Somalia which claims independence and has had effective autonomy since 1991.
Ethiopia said it wanted to set up a naval base there and offered possible recognition of Somaliland in exchange – prompting a defiant response from Somalia and fears the deal could further destabilise the Horn of Africa region.
