MOGADISHU – High level delegation led by Somali President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo has flown to Eritrea’s capital Asmara.
President Farmajo departed from China’s capital Beijing, where he attended the 7th summit of Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).
Yamane Meskal, Eritrea’s Minister of Information said President Farmajo would arrive in Asmara late on Wednesday after an official invitation.
Mr. Farmajo will join in a tripartite summit with President Isaias Afwerki and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed in Asmara.
Farmajo’s second visit comes after the long-time rivals Eritrea and Ethiopia restored diplomatic ties, a move that ended the regional and international isolation of Eritrea that lasted for nearly two decades.
For years, the tensions between Eritrea and Ethiopia had played out partly in Somalia as each gave military support to opposing sides in Somalia.
In 2007, Eritrea had supported the Islamic Courts Union ICU, which ruled much of southern and central Somalia for six months before being ousted in a 2006 Ethiopian-led military offensive.
In 2009, the United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions on Eritrea for its role in Somalia.
Eritrea was accused of supporting Somalia’s al-Shabab group, a charge it had denied. Those sanctions could soon be lifted after Ethiopia’s prime minister recently asked the U.N. to remove the sanctions on Eritrea.
