Somalia: Hassan Sheikh Mohamud opens the door to Ethiopian sea access, with conditions

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud stated on October 3, 2026, that his country does not oppose Ethiopia obtaining access to the sea, but that nothing will be done without prior negotiation with Mogadishu. His remarks, made in an interview with Al Jazeera, follow a working visit to Addis Ababa with Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, according to the Ethiopian agency Fana.

The Somali head of state set a clear limit: access to ports is possible, but Addis Ababa "has not yet come to Mogadishu to negotiate," he summarized to Al Jazeera. He added that Somalia would support neither violence nor infringements on sovereignty, and called on countries bordering the Red Sea to reach an agreement within the framework of internationally accepted norms.

A vital issue for 130 million Ethiopians

Ethiopia is one of the most populous countries on the continent and has had no maritime coastline since the independence of Eritrea. Its dependence on neighboring ports, led by Djibouti, weighs on its trade costs and has fueled an aggressive diplomacy regarding the issue of sea access for years. Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, for his part, described the Red Sea as "very, very important and strategic" for the Somali economy and security, according to Fana.

Commercial access or military presence: the red line

For the Horn Review research center, based in the region, the statement does not constitute a concession but rather a reformulation of a known approach: Ethiopian commercial access to Somali ports, negotiated by mutual agreement and placed under the sovereign authority of Somalia, within the framework of international maritime law. The think tank insists on the distinction between port usage and a permanent naval presence, and recalls that the Somali president has rejected any foreign military establishment on the coasts that Mogadishu claims.

A volatile regional sequence

These statements come at a time when the Horn of Africa is going through one of its worst recent diplomatic sequences: the breakdown of relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea, fighting in Tigray, and reciprocal expulsions of diplomats. In this context, the Somali overture places the issue of sea access back on the ground of negotiation between African states rather than that of a fait accompli.

It remains to be seen whether Addis Ababa will take the outstretched hand. The Somali president says bilateral relations are "in good shape," but conditions any progress on the opening of formal discussions in his capital. The ball is now in the Ethiopian court.