Taiwan was the first to recognise Somaliland in 2020. (Photo: Reuters) Israel on Friday became the first United Nations (UN) member state officially recognise the Republic of Somaliland as an independent and sovereign state. According to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli recognition of Somaliland is in the spirit of the Abraham Accords, signed at the initiative of US President Donald Trump.
Israel recognises Somaliland
“I congratulated the President of Somaliland, Dr. Abdirahman Mohamed Abdallah, and praised his leadership and commitment to promoting stability and peace. I invited the President to pay an official visit to Israel,” Netanyahu said in a social media post.
The Israeli PM also announced plans to expand his country’s relations with the Republic of Somaliland through extensive cooperation in the fields of agriculture, health, technology, and economy.
I announced today the official recognition of the Republic of Somaliland as an independent and sovereign state.
Together with Foreign Minister Sa’ar and the President of the Republic of Somaliland, we signed a joint and mutual declaration.
This declaration is in the spirit of… pic.twitter.com/WlZuN1HB5z
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) December 26, 2025
What is Somaliland?
Somaliland, also known as the Republic of Somaliland, is a self-declared republic in the Horn of Africa, which is internationally recognised as part of Somalia.
Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in May 1991 following the Somali Civil War and has remained de-facto independent ever since.
Taiwan was the first to recognise Somaliland in 2020, followed by Ethiopia, which, in January 2024, signed an MoU to explore formal recognition in exchange for naval base access.
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Several other countries, including the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Turkey, Denmark, and Kenya, have informal diplomatic relations with Somaliland.
Somalia, which regards Somaliland as a breakaway province, has rejected previous attempts for it to gain international recognition.
Reaction to Israeli recognition of Somaliland
On Friday, the foreign ministers of Somalia, Egypt, Turkey and Djibouti condemned Israel’s recognition of Somaliland.
“The ministers affirmed their total rejection and condemnation of Israel’s recognition of the Somaliland region, stressing their full support for the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Somalia,” Egypt’s foreign ministry says in a statement following a phone call between Egypt’s foreign minister and his Somali, Turkish and Djiboutian counterparts.
