Somalia strengthens military ties with Turkey
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Staff Reporter GAROWE ONLINE
- Posted On 30-05-2024, 09:48AM
MOGADISHU, Somalia - The Federal Republic of Somalia is seeking to deepen military ties with Turkey, a dependable European country that has been helping the Horn of Africa nation to stabilize, including through training and equipping of local forces.
Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur, the minister for defence, met his Turkish counterpart Yaşar Güler during the EFES-2024 Exercise's Distinguished Observer Day in Izmir on Wednesday, where close cooperation between the two nations was deliberated.
Defense cooperation between Somalia and Turkey has been in the offing, with the two countries signing a pact early this year. Turkey has invested immensely in Somalia’s security forces, including through training and equipping the GorGor elite troops.
"Our Turkish brothers play a major role in building our army, developing it, and fighting the Khawarij," said the Somali Defense Minister.
For the last five years, GorGor troops have played a key role in strengthening security by working closely with other elite teams in the elimination of the Al-Shabab militants. The al-Shabaab has lost strategic areas in Somalia over the last two years.
Participating countries in the exercise will get firsthand experience in the Turkish defense industry, which develops and produces a wide range of systems, from drones to helicopters, from warships to ammunition, and from electronic warfare systems to radar systems, Nur said.
Turkey pledged to support Somalia waters after Ethiopia signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Somaliland, a breakaway region of Somalia. Turkish warships are set to be deployed to the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean coastline as part of the holistic approach to beefing up security in the country.
Somalia is keen to defeat Al-Shabaab militants by the end of 2024, with more elite troops getting training ahead of the expected security takeover from the foreign troops. The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) is set to end its mandate by the end of this year.
GAROWE ONLINE
