Erdogan of Turkey claims that Israel’s recognition of Somaliland is unlawful and unacceptable

Tayyip Erdogan, the president of Turkey, claimed on Tuesday that Israel’s decision to formally recognize the self-declared Republic of Somaliland was unlawful and illegitimate and that it was an attempt to destabilize the Horn of Africa.

Speaking at a press conference in Istanbul with his Somali counterpart Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, Erdogan added that Turkey was expanding its fleet by two additional drilling vessels and that it intended to begin offshore energy drilling off the coast of Somalia in 2026 in accordance with a bilateral agreement.

Erdogan added that as part of bilateral agreements, Turkey intended to build a space port in Somalia, but he gave no further information.