UN Security Council Members Condemn Israel’s Recognition of Somaliland

GOOBJOOG NEWS | NEW YORK: United Nations Security Council members have condemned Israel’s decision to recognise Somaliland, warning the move undermines Somalia’s sovereignty and risks further destabilising the Horn of Africa.

The council held an emergency meeting after Israel became the first country to formally recognise Somaliland, a self-declared republic that has operated autonomously since 1991 but remains internationally unrecognised.

Fourteen of the council’s 15 members criticised the decision, diplomats said. The United States was the only member not to join the condemnation, though it stressed that its own policy on Somaliland had not changed.

Somalia’s UN ambassador, Abukar Dahir Osman, urged the council to reject what he described as an “act of aggression”, saying the recognition could fragment Somalia and heighten instability in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea.

He said Mogadishu was also alarmed by suggestions the move could be linked to Israeli plans to relocate Palestinians from Gaza to northwestern Somalia.

“This utter disregard for international law and morality must be stopped,” Osman told the council.

Speaking for the Arab League, envoy Maged Abdelfattah Abdelaziz said the bloc rejected any consequences stemming from what it called an illegitimate recognition, including attempts to force the displacement of Palestinians or establish foreign military bases in Somali ports.

Pakistan’s deputy UN ambassador, Muhammad Usman Iqbal Jadoon, described Israel’s decision as unlawful and deeply troubling, particularly in light of past references to Somaliland as a possible destination for Palestinians from Gaza.

China and Britain, both permanent council members, opposed the move. China’s UN envoy Sun Lei said no country should “aid and abet separatist forces” to advance geopolitical interests.

Several non-council members also weighed in. South Africa reaffirmed Somalia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in line with international law and African Union principles.

Defending Israel’s position, US deputy UN ambassador Tammy Bruce said Israel had the right, like any sovereign state, to establish diplomatic relations, but emphasised that Washington had not recognised Somaliland and had not altered its policy.

Israel’s deputy UN ambassador Jonathan Miller said the recognition was not hostile toward Somalia and did not rule out dialogue.

Slovenia rejected US comparisons between Somaliland and Palestine, saying Somaliland is part of a UN member state and that recognising it contradicts the UN Charter.

Additional reporting by agencies.