Kenyan President William Ruto extended a warm welcome to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in Nairobi on Wednesday, February 28, 2024, marking the Ethiopian leader’s inaugural state visit to Kenya since 2020. Among the topics slated for discussion between the two leaders is Ethiopia’s ongoing negotiations with the breakaway region of Somaliland to secure access to a seaport.
Ethiopia formalized a memorandum of understanding with Somaliland on Jan. 1, a development that has unsettled Somalia, whose authorities have adamantly opposed the agreement, viewing Somaliland as an integral part of its territory. Somaliland, in turn, asserts that Ethiopia committed to acknowledging its independence in exchange for access to a naval port.
The visit of Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed to Nairobi follows President Ruto’s recent trip to Addis Ababa, where he participated in the 37th African Union Summit of Heads of State and Government on Feb 16. During that summit, Ethiopia and Kenya finalized a strategic framework aimed at enhancing bilateral cooperation in crucial domains of economic and social development.
Key agreements reached during the summit include the streamlining of procedures at the Moyale One-Stop Border Post, focusing on the elimination of redundant checkpoints, as well as customs protocols and systems along the shared border between the two nations.
