Defense Minister Israel Katz met on Wednesday with Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdillahi and other senior Somaliland officials during what was described as a historic diplomatic visit to Israel. The talks focused on expanding cooperation between the two sides in security, economic and political affairs.
Katz said Israel and Somaliland are “two democracies” that share common values and a commitment to fighting terrorism in the region, strengthening regional stability, and protecting their citizens. He also said the two sides have maintained substantial security ties for years, some of them conducted secretly.
“We have a long-standing friendship based on shared interests, democratic values and a commitment to security and stability,” Katz said. “For many years we cooperated under the radar in a series of actions that will remain secret. Now we are determined to take our security cooperation to new heights, for the benefit of both peoples and the stability of the region.”
Katz said he wants to deepen the relationship and elevate cooperation in security, intelligence, technology and innovation. The Israeli delegation included senior defense and military officials, including the acting head of the Defense Ministry’s political-military affairs directorate, the deputy director-general of the ministry, the IDF planning chief and Israel’s designated ambassador to Somaliland. Somaliland was represented by its defense minister, minister of presidential affairs, army commander, presidential chief of staff, deputy head of the national intelligence agency and its ambassador to Israel.
