Somalia

Uganda

Military & Security

Ugandan army chief Muhoozi Kainerugaba, who is also President Yoweri Museveni's son, announced in a Jan. 26 post on X that Kampala intends to withdraw its troops from Somalia after nearly two decades of peacekeeping, without giving a reason.

Uganda, Somalia: Uganda's Army Chief Says Country Will Soon Withdraw Troops From Somalia

Ethiopia

United States

Egypt

Israel

Saudi Arabia

Turkey

United Arab Emirates

Economics

Politics

Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi met with U.S. President Donald Trump's son, Eric Trump, in the presence of Israeli President Isaac Herzog on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Reuters reported on Jan. 23.

Somaliland: Abdullahi Meets With Eric Trump, Israel's Herzog at Davos Summit

Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Somalia are in advanced talks to seal a military partnership, Bloomberg reported on Jan. 16.

Red Sea: Saudi Arabia in Talks To Finalize Military Partnership With Egypt, Somalia 

Somalia's federal government cancelled all port, security and commercial agreements with the United Arab Emirates on the basis that actions by the Emirati government were undermining the country's unity and territorial integrity, Bloomberg reported on Jan. 12. 

UAE, Somalia: Somaliland, Puntland, Jubaland Reject Mogadishu's Rupture of Ties With Abu Dhabi

Somali Defense Minister Ahmed Moalim Fiqi called on Arab nations under the leadership of Saudi Arabia to take action against Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland in an interview with Al Jazeera Arabic, drawing parallels between Somaliland and Yemen's now-dissolved Southern Transitional Council, Garowe Online reported on Jan. 12. 

Somalia: Defense Minister Calls Arab Nations To Take Action Against Somaliland

Lesotho

Tanzania

China

Chinese Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi began his annual start-of-the-year tour of Africa, during which he will visit Ethiopia, Somalia, Tanzania and Lesotho, Reuters reported on Jan. 7.

China, Africa: Wang Yi Kicks Off Annual Africa Tour With Focus on East Africa

Palestinian Territories

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar visited Somaliland for the first time since Israel recognized Somaliland as an independent country on Dec. 27, 2025, Reuters reported on Jan. 6.

Israel, Somalia: Israeli Foreign Minister Conducts First Visit to Somaliland After Recognition

Energy

Turkish Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said that Turkey will dispatch an oil exploration vessel off the coast of Somalia to conduct its first deepwater exploration efforts in the country next month, without specifying where exploration works would take place, Reuters reported on Jan. 2.

Somalia: Turkey To Begin Deepwater Oil Exploration as Construction Starts on Spaceport 

Assessments

Eritrea

Sudan

Syria

Yemen

Residents wave Somali flags as they attend a rally denouncing Israel's recognition of the breakaway region of Somaliland at Mogadishu Stadium in Mogadishu, Somalia, on Dec. 30, 2025. 

Two regional alignments are coalescing along the Red Sea and in the Horn of Africa, risking the escalation of proxy conflicts and longstanding rivalries.

The Unfolding Regional Realignments Along the Red Sea and Their Implications

Snapshots

Residents wave Somaliland flags as they gather to celebrate Israel's announcement recognizing Somaliland's statehood in downtown Hargeisa, on Dec. 26, 2025. 

Israel establishing military facilities in Somaliland would invite Houthi attacks against the territory and raise the likelihood of renewed disruptions to Red Sea shipping.


Israel's Recognition of Somaliland Raises the Stakes Along the Red Sea Corridor 

Sub-Saharan Africa

Mozambique

Republic of the Congo

Afghanistan

A destroyed church is seen in Mosul, Iraq.

The Islamic State's main threat to the West in 2026 will remain its ability to inspire lone-actor violence, though in the coming years the group's African, Afghan and Syrian branches may become increasingly capable of directing mass casualty attacks in Western countries.

The Islamic State's Enduring Threat to the West

Yemenis stand under a billboard depicting the seizure of an Israeli-linked ship in the sea by Yemen's Houthi-run coast guards during a demonstration staged in solidarity with the people of Gaza and against U.S. President Donald Trump's deal to end the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 3, 2025, in Sanaa, Yemen. 

While the partnership provides tactical benefits, structural limitations on Houthi resources and al Shabaab's financial independence suggest the relationship will remain opportunistic.

The Outlook for Cooperation Between Yemen's Houthis and Somalia's al Shabaab

Djibouti

The flag of Somaliland is seen during a political rally in Hargeisa on Nov. 8, 2024.

The United States is growing more likely to recognize Somaliland's statehood to secure basing rights in the territory, which would likely roil U.S.-Somalia relations and risk plunging Somalia into crisis.

Assessing the Prospect of the U.S. Recognizing Somaliland's Independence

Columns

On Geopolitics

South Sudan

Chad

Shipping containers are offloaded from a vessel at Berbera Port in Somaliland on Aug. 31, 2021.   (ED RAM/AFP via Getty Images)

The UAE is expanding its influence across East Africa through large-scale investments and security partnerships, aiming to consolidate its status as a global trade hub and counter regional competitors, at the risk of entangling regional states in broader geopolitical contests.

The UAE's Long Game in East Africa

Qatar

Europe

Philippe Lazzarini (C), the commissioner general for the U.N. Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, attends a humanitarian conference for Gaza in Cairo, Egypt, on Dec. 2, 2024, amid the continuing Israel-Hamas war.

Egypt's economic limitations will continue to restrain its assertiveness in foreign policy, constraining its ability to project power in the region.

Egypt's Economic Priorities Sideline Assertive Foreign Policy

An illustration of the Ethiopian and Somali flags.

The countries’ commitment to negotiate maritime access reduces immediate conflict risks and could enable Ethiopia to secure leasing rights at Somali ports, but tensions will likely resurge if the two sides fail to finalize a deal.

Ethiopia and Somalia Crack Open the Door To Compromise on Maritime Access

A Somali National Army soldier participates in a military drill in Mogadishu on March 19, 2024.

Egypt and Somalia's deepening security coordination risks triggering armed clashes with Ethiopia that could undermine regional counterterrorism efforts and inflame ethnic tensions.

The Horn of Africa Braces for Conflict as an Anti-Ethiopia Alliance Takes Shape

Media

Podcasts

What does Somalia's security landscape look like for the next five to 10 years?

Essential Geopolitics: The Future of Somalia

Internally displaced people walk past the Tigrayan flag at the Tsehaye camp in Ethiopia's Shire, Tigray region, on July 16, 2024. 

Factionalism within the Tigray region's ruling party raises the prospect of resurging clashes in the region, threatening to undermine Ethiopia's recent peace and economic gains.

Tigray's Leadership Tussle Bodes Ill for Ethiopia

Kenya

Haiti

U.S. President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden pose with Kenyan President William Ruto (center), alongside his wife and children, as they arrive for a State Dinner at the White House on May 23, 2024. 

Environment, Science & Technology

Science & Technology

For Kenya, stronger ties with the U.S. could unlock new investment and diplomatic opportunities, but bilateral relations could weaken if Nairobi draws down its police deployment in Haiti, or if Trump reenters the White House.

What To Expect From Stronger U.S.-Kenya Ties

Located on the Horn of Africa, Somalia shares borders with Djibouti to the northwest, Ethiopia to the west and Kenya to the south. To the north and east along the Indian Ocean, the country has the second-longest coastline in Africa.    Many have classified Somalia as the ultimate failed state, as civil conflict has gripped the country for decades. Some of Somalia's problems stem from the artificiality of the country's borders, as large ethnic Somali populations reside on the other side of the border in Ethiopia and Kenya. This weakness precipitated frequent external challenges to the country, especially during the Cold War when the United States and the Soviet Union staged proxy battles for influence in   Ethiopia and Somalia.    Somalia's biggest challenge lies in addressing a potent Islamist insurgency, followed closely by the need to reconstruct extremely fragile or nonexistent institutions. In addition to the threat posed by Islamist groups such as al Shabaab, deep-seated clan divisions have hindered efforts to foster unity. For example, the Somali National Army has received foreign financial support and training for many years, but it is largely incapable of defending the country amid its own internal divisions.    Furthermore, Ethiopia, the region's landlocked giant, is eager to prevent Somalia from re-emerging as a regional threat, as it did in the 1970s. The massive internal and external challenges facing Mogadishu suggest that international efforts to stabilize the country will continue for years to come.

SITUATION REPORTS

Uganda, Somalia: Uganda's Army Chief Says Country Will Soon Withdraw Troops From Somalia

Somaliland: Abdullahi Meets With Eric Trump, Israel's Herzog at Davos Summit

Red Sea: Saudi Arabia in Talks To Finalize Military Partnership With Egypt, Somalia

UAE, Somalia: Somaliland, Puntland, Jubaland Reject Mogadishu's Rupture of Ties With Abu Dhabi

Somalia: Defense Minister Calls Arab Nations To Take Action Against Somaliland

China, Africa: Wang Yi Kicks Off Annual Africa Tour With Focus on East Africa

Israel, Somalia: Israeli Foreign Minister Conducts First Visit to Somaliland After Recognition

Somalia: Turkey To Begin Deepwater Oil Exploration as Construction Starts on Spaceport

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