BY JIBRIL TURE

U.S. Under Secretary for Political Affairs, Victoria Nuland, met with the new Somali president, Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, on Monday at the American embassy in the heavily fortified Halane base in Mogadishu. In remarks made the following day, the U.S. State Department said the meeting served as an opportunity to “offer U.S. support for his security, reconciliation, and reform agenda. The Under Secretary also expressed continued U.S. support for Somali and African Union-led counterterrorism efforts.”

The U.S. diplomat’s visit to the country took place in the context of the devastating drought leading to food insecurity that has plagued Somalia. Nuland, therefore, held a round table discussion with Special Envoy for Drought Response, Abdirahman Abdishakur Warsame, and UN agencies in Somalia: The Food and Agriculture Organization, UNICEF, and World Food Program. For that reason, and as part of the U.S. government’s nearly $105 million in new humanitarian aid for the Horn of Africa, Washington plans to provide urgently needed food, famine prevention, and other humanitarian assistance for Somalia. This first visit of the U.S. diplomat to Somalia took place just a month after the election of Mohamud as president, which reignited U.S. interest in the region.

In comments made available to the press by the new Somali leader, the United States “continues to be a reliable partner as Somalia strengthens its state institutions to achieve political, security & economic stability.”

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