Turkish President Erdogan speaks over phone with Somali counterpart, discusses Ethiopia tensions

By Serdar Dincel

ISTANBUL (AA) — Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke over the phone on Sunday with his Somali counterpart Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, discussing tensions between the African country and its neighbor Ethiopia.

Emphasizing the importance of cooperation between Türkiye and Somalia, Erdogan said Ankara would continue its efforts to resolve tensions between Mogadishu and Addis Ababa, the Turkish Communications Directorate said on X.

He also said concrete results toward easing tensions are expected from an upcoming second round of Somalia-Ethiopia talks to be held in Türkiye's capital Ankara on Monday.

The two leaders also discussed bilateral ties as well as regional and global developments, the directorate added.

This came after another phone call between Erdogan and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali earlier on Saturday, during which reconciliation was also on the agenda.

Ties between Ethiopia and Somalia have worsened since Ethiopia struck a deal with the breakaway region of Somaliland on Jan. 1.

Türkiye has been working to ease tensions between the two countries. An initial round of direct talks between the foreign ministers of Ethiopia and Somalia took place in Ankara in early July.