Mogadishu, (SONNA):- Abdiwali Gas, the former Prime Minister of Somalia and ex-President of Puntland State, has expressed his support for the defense and economic cooperation agreement between Somalia and Turkey, which was approved by the Somali cabinet and parliament on Wednesday.
Gas, who served as the Prime Minister of Somalia from June 2011 to October 2012, said the agreement was vital for the country’s maritime security and development, as it would enable Turkey to build, train and equip the Somali navy and protect its territorial waters from piracy, illegal fishing and foreign threats.
He urged the opposition and the media to refrain from politicizing the agreement and to stand behind the Somali leaders in their efforts to safeguard the sovereignty and unity of the country.
“Somalia has the longest sea in Africa, and it does not have the ability to defend itself against pirates, garbage dumping, and invasion from abroad. These issues have created the need to look for a brotherly country to help us,” Gas told SONNA news agency.
He also said that Somalia did not intend to antagonize Turkey or Ethiopia, two of its key allies in the region, and that it was important to prevent any interference from Ethiopia in Somalia’s internal affairs.
The agreement, titled “Framework Agreement on Defense and Economic Cooperation,” was signed by Somalia’s Defense Minister Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur and Turkey’s Minister of National Defense Yasar Guler in Ankara on February 8.
According to a Somali defense official, the agreement authorizes the Turkish navy to defend Somali sea waters if necessary for the next 10 years.
Turkey has been a major partner of Somalia in various fields, including humanitarian assistance, budgetary support, security training, infrastructure development and health care.
Turkey also operates a large military base in Mogadishu, the capital of Somalia.
