The Minister of Presidential Affairs in the self-declared Somaliland, Khader Hussein Abdi, said on Saturday that the republic, which declared its independence from Somalia in 1991, is ready to grant the United States exclusive rights in the field of mines. He also expressed his openness to the idea of proposing military bases to the United States. Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi had previously frankly raised in recent weeks the possibility of granting Israel a privilege to exploit the republic's mineral wealth.
Published on: 02/22/2026 - 10:14 Last updated: 02/22/2026 - 10:21
Somaliland has expressed its willingness to grant the United States a privilege to exploit its minerals and establish military bases there, according to what a minister in the unilaterally declared republic announced.
The Minister of Presidential Affairs of the self-declared republic, Khader Hussein Abdi, said in an interview with Agence France-Presse on Saturday afternoon, “We are ready to grant the United States exclusive rights (in the field of mines). We are also open to the idea of proposing military bases to the United States.”
The republic, which declared its independence from Somalia, is seeking recognition, after Israel was the first to recognize it as an “independent, sovereign state” in late December.
Read also: Israeli recognition of the state of “Somaliland” ignites regional controversy and widespread Arab rejection
According to the Minister of Energy and Mines, Somaliland contains strategic minerals, although their quantities are unknown in the absence of studies on them so far.
Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi had previously frankly raised in recent weeks the possibility of granting Israel a privilege to exploit the republic's mineral wealth.
Khader Hussein Abdi said in the interview conducted with him in his office in the presidential palace, "We believe that we will reach some agreement with the United States."
Washington has a naval base in Djibouti, neighboring Somaliland.
Djibouti and Somaliland are located at the entrance to the Bab el-Mandeb Strait between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, and it is one of the trade routes that witnesses the largest traffic in the world, linking the Indian Ocean and the Suez Canal.
The minister was asked about the possibility of granting Israel a military base on the territory of the Republic, and he replied that “nothing is excluded” within the framework of a “strategic partnership between the two countries” that will be signed “soon” in Israel.
Analysts in the region believe that this rapprochement results from the location of the separatist republic opposite Yemen, where the Iran-backed Houthis launched attacks on Israel after the outbreak of war in the Gaza Strip.
Somaliland originally denied that it intended to receive Palestinians displaced from their land or an Israeli military base in exchange for the recent Israeli recognition of its independence, denouncing “baseless allegations.”
Since President Donald Trump's return to the White House, Washington has adopted pragmatic diplomacy toward countries that contain mineral resources that could benefit the American economy.
France 24/AFP
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