Somalia, Ethiopia to resume talks on port deal under Turkey mediation

 Somali people march against the Ethiopia-Somaliland port deal at the Yarisow stadium in Mogadishu, Somalia on January 3, 2024. PHOTO | REUTERS

The Foreign Affairs ministers of Somalia and Ethiopia will meet in Ankara next week to discuss disagreements over a port deal Addis Ababa signed with the breakaway region of Somaliland earlier this year, Turkey's Foreign Affairs Minister Hakan Fidan said.

Turkey is now mediating talks between the neighbours, whose ties became strained in January when Ethiopia agreed to lease 20 km of coastline from Somaliland, in exchange for recognition of its independence.