Somalia turns away Thailand-registered airline bound for Somaliland

By Mohamed Dhaysane

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AA) — Somalia’s Civil Aviation Authority on Thursday said it turned away an airplane registered in Thailand from entering the country's airspace.

In a statement, the agency said the plane was flying between Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates and Hargaisa, the capital of Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland.

It said the plane was turned back after failing to provide information on the cargo it was carrying.

Relations between Mogadishu and Hargaisa have been strained since Somaliland signed an agreement with Ethiopia allowing Addis Ababa access to the Red Sea and a naval base on its coast without approval from the central government. Mogadishu sees Somaliland as a regional administration part of Somalia.

Somalia on Wednesday turned back another plane, this time from an Ethiopian airline, bound to Hargaisa carrying a senior Ethiopian government delegation.

Somalia has rejected Ethiopia's Red Sea port deal with Somaliland, calling it "illegitimate," a threat to good neighborliness, and a violation of its sovereignty.

It also recalled its ambassador to Ethiopia after the agreement was signed on Jan. 1.

The Ethiopian government has defended its decision to sign the deal and said the agreement with Somaliland "will affect no party or country.

"The deal allows Ethiopia to obtain a permanent and reliable naval base and commercial maritime service in the Gulf of Aden," it has said.

Ethiopia lost its Red Sea ports in the early 1990s after the Eritrean War of Independence, which lasted from 1961 to 1991.

In 1991, Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia, leading to the establishment of two separate nations. The separation resulted in Ethiopia losing direct access to the Red Sea and key ports.