File Photo Somali Times/Somalia president Hassan Sheikh
The UN Security Council on Thursday extended an arms embargo on Somalia for another year, as the federal government tried to lift it, to help in the fight against Al-Shabab.
The council agreed to resolution 2662 (2022), supported by 11 of the 15 members of the Security Council, and no country objected. He was absent from Five countries namely; China, Gabon, Ghana and Russia.
Countries that supported the resolution, which went against the will of the federal government, include Kenya, Europe, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and United States.
Read: Somalia’s president Hassan Sheikh history of corruption 2012-2017
Read: Somalia’s president Hassan Sheikh history of corruption 2012-2017
These countries were very angry with the government of President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmajo, and when President Hassan Sheikh was elected, he made an extra effort to improve their relations and make them friends. Low IQ Hassan Sheikh Mohamoud need to return to university and learn political science.
No country want Somalia to be great again, Somalis should know that.
However, Abu Dhabi and Nairobi have rewarded Mogadishu for refusing to lift sanctions that the federal government sees as an obstacle to the fight against terrorism.
The Ambassador of the United Arab Emirates to the UN, Lana Zaki Nusseibeh said that the adoption of the resolution means that the Council is unwaveringly condemning the terrorist activities of the Al-Shabab group, while on the contrary the federal government considers that in fact, this resolution is an obstacle to the fight against Al-Shabab.
Read: Somalia’s president Hassan Sheikh history of corruption 2012-2017
Kenya’s ambassador to the UN, Martin Kimani, said he voted for the resolution because of tough measures to be taken against Al-Qaeda linked Al-Shabab.
“The Government of Somalia is seeking further support from the Assembly, including the lifting of the arms embargo. This is also the position adopted by the Peace and Security Council of the African Union.
However, this initiative did not receive enough support during this round of negotiations,” said Kimani, expressing confidence that the behavior of the Somali army and the federal government will lead to the lifting of sanctions in the future.
Somalia’s ambassador to the United Nations, Abukar Dahir Osman, expressed his displeasure at the extension of the sanctions, and praised the four countries that remained silent to not support the extension of the arms embargo.
“These sanctions tie our hands at the most difficult time in our fight against the ruthless enemy,” Abukar said.
It is not clear why Kenya, Europe and United Arab Emirates who were believed to be friends with Hassan Sheikh, did not support the federal government.
However, the resolution includes a provision allowing the federal government to acquire weapons.
“The resolution determined that all countries should take the necessary measures to prevent all weapons and military equipment from being sent to Somalia, except for the weapons used by Somalia’s security and police agencies at the national and regional levels, which are not affected by the resolution,” said the text.
The resolution also noted that the arms embargo does not apply to the delivery of weapons and military equipment, or the provision of technical, financial, other assistance, and military training for the development of Somalia’s security agencies and police, to ensure the security of the people and the country.
The sanctions also did not affect the UN, ATMIS and other international organizations operating in Somalia.
In recent months, the federal government has made a strong effort to seek the lifting of the arms embargo in Somalia, in order to obtain the weapons needed to liberate the country from the Al-Shabab terrorist group.