Ethiopia’s Contentious Port Deal Throws Volatile Horn of Africa into Uncertainty

YAOUNDE, Cameroon—Ethiopia, Somalia, and Somaliland have been plunged into an abyss of demonstrations and counter-demonstrations following the signing on Jan. 1 of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Addis Ababa and Somaliland granting Ethiopia access to the Red Sea. The deal is in return for international recognition for Somaliland. Though the details of the preliminary agreement remain contested and have not been made public, officials have said Somaliland would grant Ethiopia access to the Gulf of Aden with a naval base, in exchange for shares in Ethiopian Airlines and Ethiopian recognition of Somaliland’s independence from Somalia. The deal has faced significant international condemnation and has infuriated Somalia, which has described the move as an act of “aggression.”...