Somalia: Foreign Policy Column Urges Trump Administration to Recognize Somaliland
A foreign policy analyst has urged the U.S. to recognize Somaliland, citing its strategic location on the Gulf of Aden and its potential as a partner for security and trade. The call comes during a visit by Somaliland's president to Washington.
Why it matters
Recognizing Somaliland would be a significant shift in U.S. foreign policy in the Horn of Africa, potentially impacting regional security and maritime trade routes.
Washington - A prominent U.S. foreign-policy analyst has urged President Donald Trump's administration to recognise Somaliland, arguing that closer relations with Hargeisa would advance American security and economic interests in the strategically important Red Sea region.
The commentary, published by Foreign Policy during Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi "Irro's" landmark working visit to the United States, was written by Steven A. Cook, a columnist at the magazine and a senior fellow for Middle East and Africa studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.
"The United States has good reason to recognize Somaliland," Cook wrote. "Somalilander officials want Washington as a partner, and importantly, they have something to offer."
Cook said Somaliland's position on the Gulf of Aden, its deep-water Berbera port and nearby airfield could make it a valuable U.S. partner at a time of heightened concern over Red Sea shipping, Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
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