Kenya votes against the lifting of the arms embargo on Somalia

Kenya and Somalia have been in a deadlock over an Indian Ocean maritime boundary dispute that officially started in 2014 after Mogadishu sued Nairobi at the International Court of Justice [ICJ].

News Keydmedia Online
19 November 2022

Martin Kimani, Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations, serving as President of the Security Council in October

NEW YORK, United States - Kenya's ambassador to the UN has become one of the countries that voted not to lift the arms embargo on Somalia, which has exposed Nairobi's hostility to Mogadishu.

The Kenyan Ambassador Martin Kimani supported the resolution tabled by the UK, saying the UN Security Council had taken "a strong stand together against terrorism" after extending the embargo.

There is little doubt that the battlefield conduct and the determination of the Somali forces and government will in short order lead to the dropping of the embargo," Kimani said. "The partial arms embargo in Somalia cannot exist in perpetuity, as it is counterproductive and adversely affects the capability of the federal government to eradicate the existential threat posed by al-Shabab."

Kenya was among 11 countries that voted against the call by the Somali government and the AU to lift the long-running arms embargo on Somalia. Russia, China, Gabon, and Ghana abstained from voting in support of the Somali government.

Kenya and Somalia have been in a deadlock over an Indian Ocean maritime boundary dispute that officially started in 2014 after Mogadishu sued Nairobi at the International Court of Justice [ICJ].

In October last year, ICJ ruled largely in favour of Somalia in setting a maritime boundary in an area believed to be rich in oil and gas.

Somalia wants to rebuild and equip its army after three decades of conflict. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud declared war against Al-Shabaab with the National Army and the local population inflicted heavy losses on the group.

Somalia's U.N. Ambassador Abukar Osman expressed "deep dissatisfaction" with the extension of the arms embargo and praised the four countries that abstained for not supporting it.

KEYDMEDIA English