Somalia's PM Roble in Qatar for talks with Farmaajo's "allies"

DOHA, Qatar - Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble arrived in Doha, Qatar on Monday evening, his office said, where he's set to hold a number of meetings with top government officials in the Gulf nation.

On Tuesday, Roble met with the Amir of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al-Thani. During the talks, they reviewed bilateral relations and ways to develop them, in addition to discussing the latest developments in Somalia.

The closed-door meeting was attended by Qatar's Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al Thani, according to Qatar News Agency [QNA].

For years, Qatar has been a close ally of outgoing President Mohamed Abdullahi Farmaajo, who is currently not seeing eye to eye with PM Roble. The two have been fighting over the control of elections and security functions in the Horn of Africa nation.

Earlier, the PM got an official invitation from Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani. This is Roble's first trip to the Gulf nation which is considered to be having great influence in the Horn of Africa, in terms of trade, politics, and social relations.

It's not clear if Qatar will be interested in mediating the fallout between PM Roble and Farmaajo, but it has previously played a big role in the restoration of the relationship between Mogadishu and Nairobi. The two countries were wrangling over trade and maritime borders.

Roble jetted off to Doha shortly after his political rival Farmaajo headed to Addis Ababa for the inauguration of his ally Abiy Ahmed for a second term as Ethiopian PM. Farmaajo and Abiy Ahmed are considered to be very close friends.

Sources privy to the PM’s visit have noted the ongoing feuds between Roble and Farmaajo could the main reason for the visit. The two leaders failed to resolve their differences despite interventions by Southwest president Abdiasis Lafta Gareen and his Galmudug counterpart Ahmed Qoorqoor.

In late September, Two Galmudug ministers announced they were pulling out of the talks accusing Farmaajo of intransigence. Roble insists that he has the mandate to continue pushing for preparations of polls in Somalia.

GAROWE ONLINE