Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud spoke over the phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, and Djiboutian President Ismail Omar Guelleh.
During their discussions, the presidents congratulated President Mohamud and the Somali people on the occasion of Eid al-Adha. They offered their best wishes for success and prosperity and reiterated their support for the Somali government and people’s unity.
President Mohamud emphasised the government’s efforts to develop ties with countries that supported Somalia through difficult times.
Among other countries, Turkey, Qatar, and Djibouti are assisting the federal government of Somalia in rebuilding the Somali army, which is due to take over security responsibilities from African Union soldiers next year.
The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) handed over two additional military outposts on Wednesday, increasing the total number of locations taken over by Somali security forces to four.
ATMIS will remove 2,000 personnel by the end of June in accordance with UN Security Council Resolutions 2628 and 2670, which mandate ATMIS to gradually hand over security responsibilities to Somali security forces.