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"Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud said on Friday that the international community's condemnation of Israel’s moves toward recognising ‘breakaway territories’ is a decisive victory for Mogadishu, suggesting it successfully blocked a ‘chain reaction’ of similar steps by other nations. "The whole world stood with Somalia on that issue and has condemned the steps that has been taken by Israel," Mohamud told the Antalya Diplomacy Forum, adding that other countries had refrained from making the same moves as a result. "That is what made many other activities also hold on," he added, referring to the diplomatic pressure that halted further international engagement with Somaliland. Mohamud said Somalia now hopes to move forward on consolidating its national sovereignty, built on international consensus and in order to stabilise the region and move towards development goals. "When the challenge is between countries, then that is where the major role of the international diplomacy plays more [...] That understanding is still intact and we are working together," he stated. The diplomatic standoff was triggered by bilateral moves toward recognising parts of Somalia as an independent state, a step Mogadishu viewed as a direct assault on its territorial integrity. Under international law and the African Union charter, the sovereignty of the Somali federal state is recognized within its 1960 colonial borders, which includes the self-declared Republic of Somaliland. The President also confirmed that a parallel crisis with Ethiopia has been largely defused through ‘genuine mediation’ in Ankara. Mohamud noted that both leaderships now have a ‘serious willingness’ to finalise the issue and move toward economic cooperation, following months of tension over a controversial port deal between Ethiopia and Somaliland. This comes after Israel became the first country to recognise Somaliland on December 26, a move which triggered international condemnation, before this week appointing its first ambassador to the territory."
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