Security forces
The UK and the EU in Somalia: EUTM, Atalanta and the Baidoa training centre
The European Union launched a training mission for Somali forces, EUTM Somalia, on 7 April 2010, first in Uganda and in Mogadishu from 2014; it reached 5,000 troops trained in November 2019. The EU's naval operation Atalanta has patrolled off Somalia since December 2008. By 2026 the EU had given nearly €2.8 billion to the AU missions in Somalia since 2007, largely for troop allowances. The UK runs a training centre in Baidoa and said in January 2023 that it had trained over 2,700 Somali soldiers.
In short
European states have mostly supported Somalia's forces through training, money and naval patrols rather than through ground troops in combat. The EU runs a training mission and a naval operation and has paid a large share of the AU missions' costs. The United Kingdom trains Somali army units in Baidoa. This page records what the sources report. It is part of Foreign forces in Somalia.
The EU training mission, from 2010
The EU agreed on 25 January 2010 to set up a training mission for Somali security forces, and EUTM Somalia was launched on 7 April 2010, under Spanish command from 4 May 2010. Its first mandates were carried out in Uganda; the mission moved to Mogadishu in January 2014 (Spanish Ministry of Defence, EUTM Somalia). Wikipedia records that early training took place at Bihanga camp in Uganda and that the first "train the trainers" course in Mogadishu began in February 2014 at Jazeera Training Camp, with 16 EU trainers and 60 Somali soldiers (Wikipedia, EUTM Somalia, citing the EEAS and EUTM Somalia).
Numbers. The mission reached 5,000 troops trained on 1 November 2019, according to Spain's defence ministry. Its ninth mandate, in force since January 2025, shifted towards advising the Somali General Staff and the defence ministry, building a Somali-owned training system and training the Somali navy (Spanish Ministry of Defence). Wikipedia gives the mandate's end as 28 February 2027 and the mission's common costs for 2024 as €15.3 million (Wikipedia, citing the EEAS). See Somali National Army and Somali Navy.
Operation Atalanta, from 2008
The EU's naval force, Operation Atalanta, began on 8 December 2008 to protect World Food Programme ships and other vulnerable shipping and to deter piracy off Somalia. In March 2012 its area was extended to Somali coastal territory and internal waters, and in May 2012 EU forces struck pirate boats on the shore near Harardhere, with no casualties reported. In 2024 its arms-embargo task was refocused on al-Shabaab, and its mandate runs to 28 February 2027. It usually has about 600 personnel, one to three warships and a patrol aircraft (Wikipedia, Operation Atalanta). See Piracy off Somalia.
EU money for the AU missions
The EU has paid a large share of the AU missions' running costs, mainly troop allowances. In July 2026 Dawan reported a €75 million package from the European Peace Facility for AUSSOM, covering costs from 2025 and the first quarter of 2026, for troop allowances, non-lethal equipment and operational support, and that EU support for the AU missions in Somalia came to nearly €2.8 billion since 2007 (Dawan Africa, 2 July 2026). See AMISOM and ATMIS.
The United Kingdom
The British Army trains Somali National Army units at a training centre in Baidoa, Southwest State. In June 2021 the training covered defensive operations, command, shooting, first aid and human rights for companies of about 100 soldiers, counter-IED work run with the SNA and AMISOM, and a staff officers' course; the army had trained its 500th Somali soldier in January 2021 and planned about 600 more that year. The UK minister for Africa, James Duddridge, announced £1.6 million to counter roadside bombs and £3.37 million for Somali forces working with AMISOM (Joint Forces News, 2 June 2021). In January 2023 the outgoing UK ambassador, Kate Foster, said: "We have now trained over 2700 troops and donated 43 vehicles." The UK also gave £4.5 million that year through the UN trust fund for logistics for more than 10,000 SNA personnel. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud visited the Baidoa centre (Garowe Online, 24 January 2023).
NATO's, the US-led and China's naval missions are covered in Naval missions off Somalia.
Sources differ
- EUTM totals. About 3,600 trained by 2014 (Wikipedia, citing Sabahi) and 5,000 by November 2019 (Spanish Ministry of Defence).
- EU funding totals. Nearly €2.8 billion for the AU missions in Somalia since 2007 (Dawan, 2026); this is separate from the cost of EUTM and Atalanta.
Read the primary sources yourself
- Spanish Ministry of Defence, EUTM Somalia: page.
- Garowe Online, "UK trains over 2700 SNA soldiers" (2023): article.
- Dawan Africa, "EU reviews $81 million AUSSOM support package" (2026): article.
Sources
- Spanish Ministry of Defence, EUTM Somalia · emad.defensa.gob.es
- Wikipedia, EUTM Somalia · en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, Operation Atalanta · en.wikipedia.org
- Dawan Africa, 2 July 2026 · dawan.africa
- Joint Forces News, 2 June 2021 · joint-forces.com
- Garowe Online, 24 January 2023 · garoweonline.com
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Read the callWhere this matters
- Muqdisho (Mogadishu) and BanaadirMogadishu (Muqdisho) is Somalia's capital and makes up the Banadir region, with about 2.97 million people in 20 districts.
- Baydhabo (Baidoa) and BayBay is a farming region in South West State, with Baidoa (Baydhabo) as its main city and about 1.25 to 1.8 million people.
Same era
- Australia18,401 people of Somali ancestry and 8,101 born in Somalia lived in Australia at the 2021 Census, more than half in Victoria. History, work, issues.
- Birmingham (Somali diaspora)About 17,000 to 21,600 Somalis live in Birmingham (Census 2021), mostly in Nechells, Newtown, Small Heath and Alum Rock. History, work, health and ties home.
- Bristol (Somali diaspora)9,167 people in Bristol identified as Somali or Somalilander in Census 2021, the city's largest minority group. Where they live, work, housing, leaders and ties home.
- Calgary, Alberta, Canada2,845 people of Somali origin lived in Calgary at the 2021 Census, plus 890 in Brooks. How they came, who serves them and what they face.
- Denmark (Somali diaspora)21,885 people of Somali origin lived in Denmark in 2026, half born there. Numbers, history, work, permit reviews, and ties home.
- DjiboutiAbout 13,900 refugees from Somalia live in Djibouti (Aug 2026): numbers since 1990, Ali Addeh, Holl-Holl, the 2017 refugee law, Arta 2000 and 2025 returns.
Keep reading
- AMISOM, the African Union Mission in Somalia, 2007–2022AMISOM, 2007–2022: mandate, troop contributors and numbers, commanders, main operations, losses, funding and the record of abuses, until it became ATMIS.
- ATMIS, the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia, 2022–2024ATMIS, 2022–2024: why it was created, its drawdown in phases, the bases handed over, the attacks on its camps, and the move to AUSSOM.
- AUSSOM, the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia, 2025 to nowAUSSOM, the AU mission since January 2025: how it was approved, its size and troop allocations, Egypt and Ethiopia, Burundi's exit, and the funding gap.
- Commanders of the Somali army since 1960 (Taliyaha Ciidanka Xoogga)Every commander of the Somali armed forces since 1960, with their dates: the Republic, the military government, the transitional government and the federal government.
- Foreign forces in SomaliaWhich foreign states have deployed or trained forces in Somalia since 2006: Ethiopia, Kenya, the United States, Turkey, the UAE, Egypt, Eritrea and others, from the sources.
- Turkey's military in Somalia: Camp TURKSOM, drones and the sea pactTurkey's military role in Somalia since 2017: the TURKSOM base and the units it trains, armed drones and helicopters, the 2024 defence pact and navy, troop mandates, and the offshore oil link.