Report: Egypt sends weapons to Somalia potentially fueling conflict with Ethiopia

Egypt sent military weapons and ammunition to Somalia on Tuesday for the first time in more than four decades, Reuters reports, citing Somali diplomatic and government sources. 

The shipment is likely to strain relations with Ethiopia, which recently signed a controversial agreement with leaders of the self-declared republic of Somaliland. 

The agreement would provide Ethiopia with the right to lease coastal land in exchange for recognition of the breakaway region.

Somalia has called the deal unlawful and an “act of aggression”.  

The African Union and the U.S. both back Somalia’s territorial claims as does Egypt, which recently signed a security pact with the Mogadishu government. Ethiopia’s construction of a large hydro dam on the headwaters of the Nile River has strained relations with Egypt for years.  

"Instead of pursuing these efforts for peace, the Government of Somalia is colluding with external actors aiming to destabilise the region," Ethiopia’s foreign affairs ministry said in a statement.

Experts warn of the consequences of an escalation. 

"If the Egyptians put boots on the ground and deploy troops along the border with Ethiopia, it could bring the two into direct confrontation," Rashid Abdi, from the Sahan Research think-tank, told Reuters. 

Somalia and Egypt's foreign ministries did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.