Somaliland has summoned Turkey’s consul general in Hargeisa after accusing Ankara of “clear and unacceptable interference” in its internal affairs, following revelations of a planned meeting in Mogadishu between Turkey’s ambassador to Somalia and Sultan Abubakar Wabar, a former rebel leader.
Foreign Minister Abdirahman Dahir Aden said Ankara must provide “an immediate and satisfactory explanation,” adding that Somaliland “will never accept actions that undermine its independence, security, or interests.”
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Hargeisa views Turkish engagement with Wabar as a provocation. A decade ago, Wabar led an armed group in the Awdal region; 57 of his fighters surrendered to Somaliland forces on November 15, 2015, while Wabar evaded capture.
Tensions spiked further after Somalia’s defense minister, Ahmed Moallin Fiqi, posted a photo with Wabar in Mogadishu and wrote on X, “The time for Awdal has come”—a message widely read in Somaliland as a threat aimed at destabilizing the region.
Turkey, a key backer of Somalia’s federal government, has long opposed Somaliland’s pursuit of international recognition. Previous Somaliland administrations have accused Ankara of working to undercut its sovereignty. The purpose of the ambassador’s alleged meeting with Wabar remains unclear, and Turkish officials have not publicly commented.
The diplomatic flare-up adds new friction to an already volatile Horn of Africa landscape, where recognition politics, security competition, and great-power ties increasingly overlap. For now, Hargeisa is signaling it will push back hard and in public—and it wants accountability from a powerful player it says crossed a line.
https://www.waryatv.com/2025/07/22/spanning-a-1-15-billion/
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