How Eritrea is helping to rebuild Somalia's depleted forces

At first, the decision by the government of Somalia to dispatch troops to Eritrea for training received criticism, but it could as well turn out to be a blessing in disguise, given the area of specialization by the soldiers who have been undergoing rigorous training for the last three years.

Over the weekend, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud made his second trip to the Horn of Africa nation in as many months, a significant progress that underpins the importance of the ongoing training of close to 5000 soldiers, whose controversial stay in Asmara triggered political storms in the country.

The soldiers were recruited in a clandestine program in 2019 and ferried to Asmara in batches according to insiders, leading to disillusionment from their families who took months before hearing from them. However, the fortunes changed when Hassan Sheikh took over.

On Sunday, President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud appointed Colonel Mubarak Abdiqani Muse as the new commander of the Navy and Coastal Defense Forces. Mubarak remains in Asmara and is anticipated to arrive in Mogadishu in the coming days once the soldiers are integrated with others.

For decades, Somalia, a country that once enjoyed an autonomous strong army, has been battling to rebuild its forces, leading to interventions by friendly nations. For instance, Turkey, the United States, and Britain have heavily invested in Somalia's land forces, who are crucial in the Al-Shabaab crackdown.

The Americans particularly have been training Danab Special forces who are integrated with infantry units while Turkey is key behind the success of Gorgor troops, who are also land forces. This means the country which has a Coastline of 3,333KM has been left exposed without functional Navy units.

Eritrea, to cure this major gap, has trained Navy cadets who will play a crucial role in revamping the lost glory of the Navy forces, with the last units collapsing during the reign of dictator Siad Barre. Similar tribulations befell the Air Force, which was once one of the strongest forces in the world.

With new Navy cadets almost out, Somalia will now be able to guard her porous coastline which has been abused by criminal gangs including the Al-Shabaab, who are said to be smuggling weapons from Yemen through the Gulf of Eden. Eritrea did not give the exact number of graduating Navy cadets.

Last year, there were concerns that the Somali soldiers training in Eritrea were sneaked to neighboring Ethiopia where they allegedly engaged in the Tigray war. However, both the governments of Ethiopia and Somalia denied the allegations, despite the fact that Eritrea has been fighting in Tigray.

The Navy contingent, security experts say, will largely revive Somalia's activeness in terms of trade along the Indian Ocean, which had been hampered by increasing Al-Shabaab activities. The coastline has also been facing piracy for decades which could now be controlled upon the deployment of troops.

GAROWE ONLINE