Sunday June 11, 2023
Mogadishu (HOL) - Somali President, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, held a high-level meeting with Ambassador Souef Mohamed El-Amine, the AU Special Representative and Head of ATMIS, at Villa Somalia on Saturday.
The discussions focused primarily on security matters, specifically on the planned drawdown procedures and the timeline for ATMIS. During the meeting, President Mohamud reaffirmed the government's unwavering commitment to the Somali Transition Plan, which aims to transfer security responsibilities from African Union forces to the Somali National Army.
The African Union Military Staff Committee delegation, currently visiting Somalia, held discussions on Saturday with officials from the ATMIS mission, the Federal Government of Somalia, and the United Nations.
The delegation received a comprehensive briefing on the status of the drawdown process of 2,000 ATMIS troops by the Tripartite Technical Committee managing the drawdown – this is made up of officials from the Federal government of Somalia, ATMIS and UNSOS.
Expressing their contentment with the preparations for the drawdown, Ambassador Souef Mohamed El-Amine, the Head of ATMIS, and Ambassador Abdukhadir Mohamed Nur, Somalia's Minister of Defence, reiterated the Federal Government's commitment to assume security responsibilities.
In related news, the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) has announced preparations for the drawdown of 2,000 soldiers by June 30, 2023, are at an advanced stage. This drawdown aligns with United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCR) 2628 and 2670, which mandate ATMIS to reduce troop levels and transfer security control to Somali Security Forces in agreed-upon areas.
The drawdown of African Union troops follows a recent attack by Al-Shabab fighters on a military base housing Ugandan forces participating in the African Union peacekeeping mission in Somalia. The base, located in Bulamarer, 130km (80 miles) southwest of Mogadishu, witnessed the loss of 54 soldiers, including a commander, according to President Yoweri Museveni. This marks the first time that Uganda has officially disclosed the casualty figures resulting from an attack by the extremist group.
Since President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud's election victory last August, the Somali government has launched a robust offensive against Al-Shabab, yielding substantial progress in wresting control of significant portions of territory previously held by the group.