Ethiopia PM Makes Landmark Visit To Somalia, Where His Troops Are Protecting The Government

MOGADISHU, Somalia, Jun 05, 2007 – Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi made a surprise visit to Somalia on Tuesday, the highest ranking government official to visit Mogadishu in more than a decade, officials said.

Ethiopia , the region's military powerhouse, has sent troops to protect this chaotic nation's government. But many in predominantly Muslim Somalia resent having troops from neighboring Ethiopia, which has a large Christian population. The countries fought two brutal wars, the last in 1977.

Meles “is paying a friendly visit to Somalia and now he is in talks with the president and the prime minister,” Somali government spokesman Abdi Haji Gobdon told The Associated Press.

Ethiopia reopened its embassy in Somalia in late May for the first time in 30 years.

Somalia 's government had struggled to survive since forming with backing from the United Nations in 2004, and was sidelined by a radical Islamic group until Ethiopia's military intervened Dec. 24 and turned the tide.

But insurgents linked to the Islamic group, known as the Council of Islamic Courts, have launched a guerrilla war, saying the government is allowing Ethiopia to «occupy» the country. The U.S. has long accused the Islamic group of having ties to al-Qaida, which the council denies.

Meles has not stepped foot in Mogadishu for years, but he does have a history here. Under the protection and support of the late Somali dictator Siyad Barre, Meles organized the rebellion that brought him to power from a base in Mogadishu.

Ted Dagne, a specialist in African Affairs at the Congressional Research Service, the research arm of the U.S. Congress, said Meles' visit «doesn't really represent a new era in Ethiopian-Somali relations.»

“For many Somalis, they see the presence of Ethiopian troops as an occupation force,” he said.

Source: AP