President Isaias Afwerki and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud held extensive talks on bilateral, regional and international issues of common interest at State House on Wednesday evening.
The two leaders underscored the imperative of further bolstering the bilateral cooperation of the two sisterly countries in the heavy tasks of maintaining the sovereignty, territorial integrity, independence, and unity of Somalia, which remains a prerequisite for its development against the backdrop of enormous challenges in the past two decades.
It comes as tension continues over Ethiopia’s controversial port access deal with Somaliland, a breakaway enclave of Somalia, which condemned the agreement and has been rallying other countries in the region on its side.
Ethiopia also has strained ties with Somali ally Egypt over the building of a hydroelectric dam on the Nile, which Cairo says will drastically reduce its share of water from Africa’s longest river.
Last month Egypt shipped military hardware to Somalia in a rearmament drive which has alarmed Ethiopia.
The Somali and Eritrean leaders noted that building a strong and developed nation is invariably predicated on robust and sovereign institutions, including a viable defense and security architecture.
Eritrea’s training of the Somali national army is aligned with these policy objectives and the two sides agreed to expand their cooperation in other relevant areas to address other challenges of nation-building.
WN/as/APA