Somalia’s President says Ethiopia can only have Maritime access through the federal government of Somalia

The President of Somalia, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, repeated his statement that Somalia is ready to help Ethiopia to get access to the sea if it respects Somalia’s sovereignty and follows international law.

Talking to Aljazeera, President Hassan Sheikh said that the question is not will Ethiopia access the sea and clarified that Somalia wants Ethiopia to have access to the sea adding that the federal government was ready to negotiate a deal with Addis Ababa.

President Hassan Sheikh asserted that while Somalia supports Ethiopia’s access to the sea, such diplomatic discussions must be conducted with the federal government of Somalia, emphasizing its legitimate authority in handling such matters.

Somalia President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has warned Ethiopia against taking steps to implement the memorandum of understanding it signed with Somaliland on 1st January this year.

However, Somaliland and Ethiopia repeatedly expressed their commitment to implementing the Memorandum of understanding and called on the international community to respect and endorse it.