Thursday 3,April 2025 {HMC} Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud met with Djibouti’s President Ismail Omar Guelleh in Djibouti on Wednesday, where the two leaders held high-level talks deepening bilateral relations and enhancing strategic cooperation.

The discussions focused on advancing collaboration in key sectors, including security, economic development, trade, and political coordination. Both presidents underscored the historic and fraternal ties between the Somali and Djiboutian peoples and reaffirmed their shared commitment to regional stability.

President Mohamud expressed his gratitude to Djibouti for its longstanding support to Somalia, particularly in peacekeeping and counterterrorism. He commended Djibouti’s contributions to regional peace efforts and thanked President Guelleh for his country’s role in the fight against Al-Shabaab.

“Djibouti has played a critical role in Somalia’s state-building process, and we are deeply thankful for their unwavering solidarity,” President Mohamud said.

President Guelleh reiterated Djibouti’s commitment to supporting Somalia, emphasizing the importance of cooperation in rebuilding Somali institutions and securing the Horn of Africa.

“Djibouti has always stood by Somalia, and we will continue to provide support in the fight against terrorism and in strengthening governance and security institutions,” Guelleh stated.

Djibouti is a key troop-contributing country to the African Union peacekeeping efforts in Somalia and is expected to play a central role in the upcoming African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), which will replace ATMIS in July 2025.

Thursday 3,April 2025 {HMC} Azerbaijan formally approved a bilateral agreement with Somalia on Wednesday to extend cooperation in the field of education.

President Ilham Aliyev signed a decree ratifying the “Agreement on Cooperation in the Field of Education” between the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Ministry of Education, Culture and Higher Education of the Federal Republic of Somalia.

The agreement was signed in Baku on Feb. 12, 2025, during an official visit by Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

Following the decree, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Science and Education is tasked with implementing the terms of the agreement. The country’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs will notify the Somali government once all internal procedures required for the agreement to take effect have been completed.

The agreement was one of several key documents signed during a formal exchange ceremony attended by Presidents Aliyev and Mohamud in the Azerbaijani capital.

During the ceremony, Ulvi Mehdiyev, Chairman of Azerbaijan’s State Agency for Public Service and Social Innovations, and Abdihakim Mohamed Yusuf, Chief of Staff to the Somali president, exchanged a memorandum of understanding to strengthen cooperation in public service delivery.

Energy ministers from both countries also signed a memorandum of understanding focused on green energy collaboration. Azerbaijan’s Minister of Energy, Parviz Shahbazov, and Somalia’s Minister of Energy and Water Resources, Abdullahi Bidhan Warsame, pledged to work together on initiatives related to renewable energy.

In addition, Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and Somali Foreign Minister Ahmed Moallim Fiqi exchanged the signed education cooperation agreement now approved by President Aliyev.

Thursday 3,April 2025 {HMCC} Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud on Wednesday appointed Brigadier General Abdiwahab Abdullahi Omar as the new Commander of the Somali Navy, signaling a renewed effort to increase maritime security and reclaim control over the country’s vast coastline.

In a presidential decree, President Mohamud emphasized the critical importance of a strong naval force for safeguarding Somalia’s territorial waters and upholding national sovereignty.

“The government is working to strengthen the Somali Navy so that it can take over the security and defense of our maritime borders, which are essential for our nationhood and unity,” the President stated.

President Mohamud praised outgoing Navy Commander Admiral Abdi Warsame for his contributions during his tenure and urged the incoming Commander to “double down” on national duties and accelerate naval reforms.

The appointment comes amid a broader government campaign to rebuild the Somali Navy, which was decimated by decades of conflict. Since 2023, hundreds of Somali naval personnel trained in countries like Eritrea have returned home, forming the foundation of a new maritime security architecture.

Somali waters—strategically located along major international shipping routes—have long been vulnerable to piracy, illegal fishing, and smuggling. While the European Union’s Naval Force (EUNAVFOR) continues to patrol these waters through its mission in Somalia (EUMIS), the Somali government aims to assume full control over its maritime domain gradually.