Ethiopian troops in Somalia are expected to leave the country at the end of December 2024, according to the national security adviser, Hussein Sheikh Ali.
Ethiopian forces will not be part of the AU forces that will operate in Somalia when the African Union Transitional Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) ends in December this year.
The national security adviser said that the troops to be built in the new operation will come from four countries, Djibouti, Kenya, Uganda and Burundi.
Thousands of Ethiopian soldiers are part of the ATMIS operation. There are also parts of the Southern regions of the country where Ethiopian troops are not part of the ATMIS mission.
ATMIS is expected to leave Somalia by the end of December 2024, according to UN Security Council Resolution 2710 (2023).
However, ATMIS said there are plans to establish a post-ATMIS force to help protect strategic population centers, UN facilities and key government facilities.
Diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and Somalia have dropped to the lowest level, after Ethiopia signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Somaliland administration on January 1 of this year, with the agreement allowing Ethiopia to have a military base in the sea. commercial port, so that Somaliland also gets recognition.
The Somali government rejected the agreement, and in April expelled the Ethiopian ambassador to Somalia, Muqtar Mohamed Waare, and ordered the closure of the Ethiopian consulates in Somaliland and Puntland.
