Somaliland leader says Israeli firm could be granted port access

The president of the breakaway Somaliland region, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, said on Friday that his party has "not ruled out the possibility of granting an Israeli company a port" on its territory.

Abdullah said the region’s strategic location makes it vital to maritime security, especially as Houthi attacks on Israel-linked vessels in the Red Sea have disrupted roughly 12% of global trade.

On the sidelines of the World Government Summit in Dubai, Adullahi told an Israeli newspaper that he welcomed Israeli investments in the region. 

"Somaliland is rich in resources, and we welcome investments," he said, adding that the territory is "important for maritime trade, and therefore relations with Israel are also important."

Abdullah said that the region possesses vast mineral, oil and gas resources, in addition to a large livestock population and arable land, stressing that these resources can contribute to enhancing food security for the world and for Israel in particular.

"I encourage Israeli businessmen to come and establish projects in the fields of energy, tourism, agriculture, grazing, aviation and finance," he added. 

In January, a Somaliland official said that the breakaway region could host an Israeli military base, weeks after Israel became the first country to officially recognise Somaliland as a state. 

Following the decision, Somaliland authorities officially denied an accusation by Somalia that their state would accept Palestinians forcibly displaced from Gaza, or that it would host an Israeli military base on its soil. 

Israel's Channel 12 news cited Deqa Qasim, an official in Hargeisa’s foreign ministry, as saying that a military base was being spoken about, though it would depend upon the content of an agreement between both sides, following the opening of mutual embassies. 

Somaliland hosts the strategically vital port city of Berbera, on the Gulf of Aden coast.

In early January, a ship carrying Aidarous al-Zubaidi, the Yemeni southern separatist leader backed by the UAE, docked in Berbera.

Saudi Arabia then accused the UAE, a nominal ally it has rising tensions with, of spiriting Zubaidi out of Yemen to Abu Dhabi via the Somaliland port.

Saudi Arabia backs the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) in Yemen, where the UAE has supported separatist groups. 

The situation in southern Yemen shifted dramatically last month when Saudi Arabia backed a demand by the PLC for Emirati forces to withdraw, after the STC unilaterally seized territory under its control.

The UAE announced its withdrawal following a Saudi air strike that targeted a weapons shipment bound for the separatists. Saudi forces then moved swiftly to replace them in PLC-controlled areas, including Aden, Lahj, Hadhramaut and the west coast, sidelining the STC. 

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The UAE's relationship with Somaliland dates back to 2017, when the government of Somaliland accepted an Emirati bid to establish a military base in Berbera, hoping that this relationship would strengthen its case for independence.

Satellite imagery analysed by MEE shows that the Emirati naval base has transformed from a stalled project to a nearly completed facility, with advanced infrastructure including a modern military port, a deep-water dock, an airstrip with hangars and support facilities.

Berbera is part of a string of UAE bases that form a ring around the Gulf of Aden and Red Sea, through which about a third of global shipping passes.

The bases have been set up with support from the US and Israel, which is also looking at how it can expand its presence in and around Berbera.

The runway at Berbera is 4km long - one of the longest in Africa, owing in part to the fact that it was once rented by Nasa as a potential emergency landing strip for the Space Shuttle - meaning it can receive heavy transport aircraft and fighter jets.

The port at Berbera, which has been greatly expanded since 2022, is jointly owned by DP World, the UAE's maritime logistics giant, the government of Somaliland and the British government.