Somalia and Ethiopia

How do Somalia and Ethiopia relate today?

Relations are open again after a sharp rupture in 2024. On 1 January 2024 Ethiopia signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Somaliland on sea access at Berbera (Al Jazeera, 1 January 2024). Somalia's cabinet declared the MoU "null and void" and recalled its ambassador the next day (SONNA, 2 January 2024).

Turkey brokered the Ankara Declaration, agreed on 11 December 2024 by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed (Turkish Ministry of Foreign Affairs). In January 2025 the two governments agreed to restore "full diplomatic representation" in each other's capitals (Garowe Online, 13 January 2025).

Ethiopia's new ambassador, Suleiman Dedefo, presented his credentials in Mogadishu on 5 August 2025 (Africanews, 6 August 2025). The two leaders met for the fourth time in six months when Hassan Sheikh visited Addis Ababa, ending on 29 June 2026 (RFI via AllAfrica, 30 June 2026). They met again in Addis Ababa on 29 September 2026 (Garowe Online, 11 November 2026). On 5 October 2026 Hassan Sheikh congratulated Abiy on his new term and said he would work "to strengthen Somalia-Ethiopia relations" (Dawan Africa, 5 October 2026). On 11 November 2026 the two met in Antalya, Turkey, before the COP31 climate summit, to discuss security in Somalia and the region (Garowe Online, 11 November 2026).

When did contact begin?

The two peoples have lived side by side for centuries, and the Ethiopian–Somali frontier was drawn in the colonial era. For that story see Partition 1884–1926 and the Haud transfer of 1954–1955.

Trouble began soon after Somalia's independence in July 1960. Clashes between Ethiopian border guards and Somali herders led both sides to reinforce the frontier (MIT CASCON case study). In January 1964 fighting broke out, and Somalia declared a state of emergency (MIT CASCON).

The Organisation of African Unity (OAU) Council of Ministers passed a resolution on the dispute on 29 February 1964 (OAU CM/Res.16 (II), AfricanLII). Talks in Khartoum, with Sudan's President Ibrahim Abboud mediating, produced a ceasefire from 1 April 1964 and a joint border commission (US Office of the Historian, FRUS 1964–68, vol. XXIV; MIT CASCON).

The Ogaden war ran from July 1977 to March 1978 (ICRC, 2018). See The Ogaden war of 1977 and The 1982 border war.

On 3 April 1988 the two states signed an agreement that normalised relations and provided for the return of all prisoners (ICRC, 2018). Nearly 4,000 prisoners of war and interned civilians, held since the Ogaden war, were then released (ICRC, 2018).

Who are the ambassadors and envoys?

Ethiopia to Somalia

• Seyoum Mesfin, Ethiopia's foreign minister, opened Ethiopia's embassy in Mogadishu, near the presidential palace, in May 2007 (Al Jazeera, 28 May 2007).
• Abdiaziz Ahmed Aden, ambassador until 2017 (Garowe Online, 9 March 2017).
• Jamaludin Mustafa Omar, formerly deputy ambassador, named ambassador in March 2017 (Garowe Online, 9 March 2017).
• Muktar Mohamed Ware, ambassador until Somalia gave him 72 hours to leave on 4 April 2024 (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024).
• Suleiman Dedefo Woshe, ambassador since 5 August 2025 (Africanews, 6 August 2025).

Somalia to Ethiopia

• Abdullahi Mohamed Warfa, ambassador in Addis Ababa, recalled for consultation on 2 January 2024 (SONNA, 2 January 2024).

Missions: Ethiopia has an embassy in Mogadishu. It also ran consulates general in Hargeisa and Garowe, which Somalia ordered closed in April 2024 (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024). Somalia has an embassy in Addis Ababa, where the African Union is also based. In October 2026 Puntland's acting president met Ethiopia's consul (AllAfrica, 12 October 2026).

Who built the tie?

• Ibrahim Abboud, President of Sudan, mediated the 1964 ceasefire (US Office of the Historian).
• Siad Barre and Mengistu Haile Mariam signed the 3 April 1988 normalisation accord (ICRC, 2018).
• Seyoum Mesfin, foreign minister, reopened Ethiopia's Mogadishu embassy in May 2007 and met more than 60 political, religious and clan leaders (Al Jazeera, 2007).
• Mohamed Ali Gedi, interim prime minister in 2007, called Ethiopia "the number one friend of this country" at the opening (Al Jazeera, 2007).
• Abiy Ahmed and Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo agreed in Mogadishu on 16 June 2018 to invest jointly in four seaports (Arab News, 16 June 2018).
• Isaias Afwerki, President of Eritrea, signed the three-way cooperation declaration with Abiy and Farmaajo in Asmara on 5 September 2018 (PA-X Peace Agreements Database).
• Tewolde GebreMariam, Ethiopian Airlines chief executive, announced the airline's return to Mogadishu in November 2018 (Africanews, 11 November 2018).
• Muse Bihi Abdi, then President of Somaliland, signed the January 2024 MoU with Abiy (Al Jazeera, 1 January 2024).
• Redwan Hussien, Ethiopia's national security adviser in 2024, said the MoU would allow commercial marine operations (Al Jazeera, 1 January 2024). As head of Ethiopia's intelligence service he joined the February 2025 military talks in Mogadishu (Fana, 22 February 2025).
• Farhan Jimale, Somali government spokesperson, announced the January 2024 recall of the ambassador (SONNA, 2 January 2024).
• Ali Omar, Somali state minister for foreign affairs, announced the expulsion of Ethiopia's ambassador on 4 April 2024 (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024).
• Abdirahman Dahir Adan, Somaliland foreign minister under President Abdirahman Irro, opened a review of the MoU in January 2025 (Garowe Online, 7 January 2025).
• Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of Turkey, hosted the two leaders and facilitated the Ankara Declaration (Turkish MFA).
• Field Marshal Birhanu Jula (Ethiopia) and Major General Odawa Yusuf Rage (Somalia), chiefs of defence, agreed the Ethiopian place in the new AU mission on 22 February 2025 (Fana, 22 February 2025).
• Abdullahi Mohamed Ali, director of Somalia's NISA intelligence agency, took part in the same talks (Fana, 22 February 2025).

What agreements have they signed?

• Khartoum ceasefire, March–April 1964: troop withdrawal and a joint border commission (MIT CASCON).
• Normalisation accord, 3 April 1988: normal relations and repatriation of prisoners (ICRC).
• Joint statement, 16 June 2018: joint investment in four seaports, plus roads, logistics and visas (Arab News, 16 June 2018).
• Joint Declaration on Comprehensive Cooperation, 5 September 2018: Ethiopia, Somalia and Eritrea pledged close political, economic, social, cultural and security ties (PA-X).
• Defence Cooperation MoU, December 2023: referred to in the February 2025 chiefs' communiqué (Fana, 2025).
• Ankara Declaration, 11 December 2024: mutual respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity; Ethiopian sea access through commercial deals "under the sovereign authority of the Federal Republic of Somalia"; technical talks by the end of February 2025 (Turkish MFA).
• Restoration of full diplomatic representation, January 2025 (Garowe Online).
• Joint communiqué, 27 February 2025: diplomatic, economic and security cooperation (Horn Review, 27 February 2025).

Which leaders have visited?

• May 2007: Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin in Mogadishu (Al Jazeera).
• 16 June 2018: Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in Mogadishu, the first Ethiopian leader to visit in more than 40 years, according to Reuters reporting (Arab News).
• 5 September 2018: Farmaajo and Abiy in Asmara for the tripartite summit (PA-X).
• 11 December 2024: Hassan Sheikh and Abiy in Ankara (Turkish MFA).
• January 2025: Hassan Sheikh in Addis Ababa (Garowe Online).
• 14–16 February 2025: Hassan Sheikh in Addis Ababa for talks with Abiy (Fana).
• 22 February 2025: Ethiopian defence chief Birhanu Jula in Mogadishu (Fana).
• 27 February 2025: Abiy on a one-day working visit to Mogadishu (Horn Review).
• 28–29 June 2026: Hassan Sheikh in Addis Ababa for two days (RFI via AllAfrica).
• 29 September 2026: Hassan Sheikh and Abiy in Addis Ababa (Garowe Online).
• 11 November 2026: Hassan Sheikh and Abiy in Antalya, Turkey (Garowe Online).

How much do they trade?

Somalia does not report trade data to the UN, so Ethiopia's own customs figures are the main record. Ethiopia reported these exports to Somalia (UN Comtrade, Ethiopia reporter, 2021; 2022; 2023):

• 2019: US$272.4 million
• 2021: US$360.8 million
• 2022: US$264.9 million
• 2023: US$142.2 million

Imports from Somalia were small, about US$1.1 million in 2023 (UN Comtrade, 2023). In 2023, US$133.1 million of exports were in HS chapter 07, edible vegetables (UN Comtrade, by chapter, 2023).

Khat is the best-known good. Ethiopian khat is most popular in Somaliland and enters Somalia mainly over land (Rift Valley Institute, 2020). Somaliland halted khat imports on 23 April 2020 during COVID-19 and lifted the ban in May 2020 (Hiiraan Online, May 2020). See The khat trade.

Livestock from Somali herders also crosses the border both ways, and the Berbera–Wajaale road is a main corridor for Ethiopian goods. See Ethiopia–Somaliland border trade.

Companies:

• Ethiopian Airlines flight ET 377 landed in Mogadishu on 9 November 2018, its first flight there in about 40 years (Africanews, 11 November 2018).
• DP World Berbera: in March 2018 Ethiopia acquired a 19% stake in Berbera port, with DP World at 51% and Somaliland at 30%; DP World planned to invest US$442 million there (Arab News, 14 March 2018).

How much aid and money has gone in?

Ethiopia is a neighbour that receives aid rather than a large donor. Its main contributions have been troops, hosting refugees and air links. Its largest public cost has been its forces in Somalia since 2006 (see below).

What about security?

Ethiopian forces entered Somalia in 2006 at the request of the Transitional Federal Government and completed their withdrawal in January 2009 (Al Jazeera, 26 January 2009). Ethiopian troops crossed into Somalia again in November 2011, and on 22 January 2014 about 4,000 of them, in three battalions, formally joined the AU mission AMISOM (Arab News, 22 January 2014). On 22 February 2025 the two defence chiefs agreed Ethiopia's role in the new mission AUSSOM and a Status of Forces Agreement for all Ethiopian forces in Somalia (Fana, 22 February 2025). For bases, numbers and operations see Foreign forces in Somalia.

How does Ethiopia deal with Somaliland and the member states?

Somaliland

• Ethiopia ran a consulate general in Hargeisa until Somalia ordered it closed in April 2024 (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024).
• In March 2018 Somalia's lower house voted, with 168 of 170 members against the deal, to declare the DP World–Somaliland–Ethiopia Berbera deal "null and void" (Arab News, March 2018).
• The January 2024 MoU covered access to Berbera and a leased military base on the Red Sea, with a stake in Ethiopian Airlines for Somaliland (Al Jazeera, 1 January 2024). Al Jazeera later reported it as a 50-year lease of 20 km of coast (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024).
• Muse Bihi said Ethiopia would recognise Somaliland "in due course" (Al Jazeera, 1 January 2024). VOA reported that it was unclear when the pact would take effect (VOA Africa, 1 January 2024).
• On 7 January 2025 Somaliland's new foreign minister, Abdirahman Dahir Adan, said the new government had not seen the MoU and would review it; he said Ethiopia had at no point "explicitly committed to recognizing Somaliland" (Garowe Online, 7 January 2025).
• Israel recognised Somaliland on 26 December 2025 (Al Jazeera, 26 December 2025). Ethiopia's ambassador to Somalia said Ethiopia was watching the decision closely and had not taken a formal position (Horn Diplomat).
• In August 2026 Somaliland and Ethiopia's Somali Region met in Hargeisa for a third dialogue on the Berbera corridor (Dawan Africa).

Puntland

• Ethiopia ran a consulate general in Garowe, also ordered closed in April 2024 (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024).
• In April 2024 Ethiopia and Puntland agreed to deepen ties during a visit by a Puntland delegation led by its finance minister (Fana).
• In July 2025 Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni prepared an official visit to Ethiopia to sign cooperation agreements (AllAfrica, 15 July 2025).

Jubaland

• Ethiopian troops serving outside the AU mission blocked Jubaland's first deputy president, Mohamud Sayid Adan, from entering Beled Hawo in Gedo (Garowe Online).

Have there been disputes?

• 1964 border war: fighting from January 1964 until the April ceasefire (MIT CASCON).
• 1977–1978 Ogaden war (ICRC).
• 2006–2009 intervention: Ethiopian troops entered at the request of Somalia's UN-backed government and faced attacks by al-Shabaab (Al Jazeera, 2009).
• 2024 MoU dispute: Somalia called it "naked aggression" (SONNA, 2 January 2024). Ethiopia said the deal was commercial and vital to its economy (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024). Hassan Sheikh said: "We want Ethiopia to have access to the sea... But grabbing a piece of land, we are not ready for that" (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024).
• Ethiopian talks with Puntland in 2024 added to tension with Mogadishu (Al Jazeera, 4 April 2024).

How many Somalis live in Ethiopia?

At the end of 2025 UNHCR counted 317,879 refugees and 43,993 asylum seekers from Somalia in Ethiopia (UNHCR Refugee Data Finder API). See Ethiopia (Somali refugees and the Somali Region).

Where does Ethiopia stand in the UN and other bodies on Somalia?

• Ethiopia is a troop contributor to the AU missions: AMISOM from January 2014 and AUSSOM from 2025 (Arab News, 2014; Fana, 2025).
• Both are members of IGAD, the African Union and the UN. IGAD welcomed the Ankara Declaration (Addis Standard).
• In 1964 Somalia sought emergency sessions of the UN Security Council and the OAU over the border fighting, without success (MIT CASCON).

Related pages

• Ethiopia (Somali refugees and the Somali Region)
• The Ogaden war of 1977
• The 1982 Ethiopian–Somali border war
• Haud transfer 1954–1955
• Islamic Courts Union 2006
• Foreign forces in Somalia
• AUSSOM
• The khat trade
• Ethiopia–Somaliland border trade
• Somaliland 1991 to 2026
• Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
• Siad Barre
• Muse Bihi Abdi