Cairo, July 8, 2025 — Egypt vowed to oppose Ethiopia’s push for Red Sea access and pledged to accelerate military support to Somalia, deepening a security alliance amid rising regional tensions.
After talks with Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi said Egypt “will not tolerate moves that threaten Somali sovereignty or the safety of the Red Sea corridor,” a vital waterway for global trade.
The warning comes months after Ethiopia signed a controversial memorandum with Somaliland in January 2024, seeking naval and commercial access in exchange for potential recognition of the breakaway region.
Somalia has denounced the deal as illegal, while Egypt says it endangers shipping routes to the Suez Canal.
Under a defense pact signed last year, Egypt has been training and equipping Somali special forces battling the al-Shabaab insurgency. El-Sissi said that program would now expand and that Egyptian troops could join a future African Union stabilization mission in Somalia once funding is secured.
Mohamud welcomed the move, saying a stronger Somali army would “shut the door to foreign interference.” The two leaders also agreed to boost cooperation in trade, energy, and fisheries, while coordinating diplomatic efforts to block the Ethiopia-Somaliland pact at upcoming African Union and Arab League summits.
Ethiopia, landlocked since Eritrea’s 1993 independence, has long sought a direct seaport to ease export costs. Currently, over 90 percent of its trade flows through Djibouti. The Red Sea remains a sensitive global corridor patrolled by international navies amid threats from piracy and regional conflicts.
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