Gulf and Middle East
Somalia and Syria
Somalia and Syria have had relations since December 1964. Somalia kept ties through Syria's civil war and sent a resident ambassador, Abiib Muse Farah, who presented credentials to President Ahmad al-Sharaa in September 2025. Syria rejected Israel's recognition of Somaliland on 28 December 2025. Syria hosted several hundred to several thousand Somali refugees after 1991.
How do Somalia and Syria relate today?
Somalia has a resident ambassador in Damascus. Abiib Muse Farah gave a copy of his credentials to Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani on 2 September 2025 (SANA, 2 September 2025). He then presented them to President Ahmad al-Sharaa, who sent greetings to President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (TRT Afrika, September 2025).
On 28 July 2026 Farah met Mohammad al-Ahmad, the Syrian foreign ministry's adviser for Arab affairs, to discuss cooperation (SANA, 28 July 2026). In May 2025 President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud welcomed the lifting of sanctions on Syria at the Baghdad Arab summit (Somalia MFA).
Recorded trade is very small. Syria's last figures in WITS show exports to Somalia of US$783,000 in 2010 (WITS).
When did contact begin?
Relations date from 14 December 1964, according to a CIA foreign-broadcast report of that year, as cited in Wikipedia's table of Somalia's relations.
Before the Ogaden War, Somali soldiers trained in Syria. In July 1977 some of Somalia's MiG-21 missions were flown by Iraqi and Syrian pilots (ACIG, Ogaden War 1977–1978). President Siad Barre toured Syria, Iraq and other states at the turn of 1978 to seek support (same source).
Who are the ambassadors and envoys?
- Abiib Muse Farah, Somalia's ambassador in Damascus since September 2025 (SANA). He is also non-resident ambassador to Jordan (Petra, 6 September 2026).
No Syrian ambassador to Somalia appears in the sources found.
Who built the tie?
- Ahmad al-Sharaa, Syria's president, received Ambassador Farah in 2025 and praised the "historical relations" with Mogadishu (TRT Afrika).
- Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani, Syria's foreign minister, received the credentials copy on 2 September 2025 (SANA).
- Ahmed Moallim Fiqi, then Somalia's foreign minister, wrote to the new Syrian foreign minister in January 2025 and said he planned to visit Damascus (Hiiraan Online, January 2025).
- Faisal Mekdad, Syria's former foreign minister, held the first phone call with a Somali foreign minister since the Syrian war began in 2011 (Somali Guardian).
- Siad Barre, Somalia's president, sought Syrian backing during the Ogaden War (ACIG).
What agreements have they signed?
No bilateral agreements appear in the sources found.
Which leaders have visited?
- Late 1977 to early 1978: President Siad Barre visited Syria (ACIG).
- September 2025: Ambassador Farah received at the presidential palace in Damascus (TRT Afrika).
How much do they trade?
Syria's exports to Somalia (WITS):
- 2006: US$1.43 million
- 2009: US$962,000
- 2010: US$783,000
Syria's imports from Somalia were US$859,000 in 2008 and US$684,000 in 2010 (WITS). No later Syrian figures are published.
How much aid and money has gone in?
The UN's Financial Tracking Service records no Syrian funding to Somalia since 1999 (OCHA FTS). Somalia owes Syria no debt in the Ministry of Finance's end-2025 list (Ministry of Finance, FY2025 debt report).
What about security?
Syria trained Somali soldiers before 1977, and Syrian pilots flew for Somalia in the Ogaden War (ACIG). No later military ties appear in the sources found. See Foreign forces in Somalia.
How does Syria deal with Somaliland and the member states?
On 28 December 2025 Syria's foreign ministry called Israel's recognition of Somaliland "a direct infringement on the sovereignty, national unity and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Somalia." It warned that "any attempts to create parallel entities or support separatist projects represent a dangerous precedent" (UNA-OIC, 28 December 2025).
Syria was not among the 21 signatories of that day's joint statement (Radio Algérie). No dealings with Somaliland or the member states appear in the sources found.
Have there been disputes?
No disputes between the two governments appear in the sources found.
How many Somalis live in Syria?
UNHCR counted 2,762 Somali refugees in Syria in 2010 and 205 in 2025 (UNHCR, 2010; UNHCR, 2025). In 1995 the figure was 1,199 (UNHCR, 1995).
Where does Syria stand in the UN and other bodies on Somalia?
Syria backs Somalia's territorial integrity (UNA-OIC). Somalia's president welcomed the lifting of sanctions on Syria at the 2025 Arab summit (Somalia MFA).
Related pages
Sources
- SANA, 2 September 2025 · sana.sy
- TRT Afrika, September 2025 · trtafrika.com
- SANA, 28 July 2026 · sana.sy
- Somalia MFA · web.mfa.gov.so
- WITS · wits.worldbank.org
- Wikipedia's table of Somalia's relations · en.wikipedia.org
- ACIG, Ogaden War 1977–1978 · acig.org
- Petra, 6 September 2026 · petra.gov.jo
- Hiiraan Online, January 2025 · hiiraan.com
- Somali Guardian · somaliguardian.com
- WITS · wits.worldbank.org
- OCHA FTS · api.hpc.tools
- Ministry of Finance, FY2025 debt report · mof.gov.so
- UNA-OIC, 28 December 2025 · una-oic.org
- Radio Algérie · news.radioalgerie.dz
- UNHCR, 2010 · api.unhcr.org
- UNHCR, 2025 · api.unhcr.org
- UNHCR, 1995 · api.unhcr.org
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