Saturday May 8, 2021
MOGADISHU (HOL) - Somalia has maintained the maritime case with Kenya will be determined by the International Court of Justice (ICJ), allaying reports that the two countries had resolved to an out-of-court settlement.
Deputy Prime Minister Mahdi Guled, who has been Somalia’s chief agent at the ICJ, said Saturday there was no correlation between the case and the resumption of diplomatic ties with Kenya.
“The maritime dispute will be finalized by the International Court of Justice following oral hearing completed on March 15-18 this year,” Guled said. “We are awaiting fair judgment. The diplomatic relations between the two countries is a separate issue.”
There have been media reports that the Qatari special envoy for counterterrorism and mediation of conflict resolution, Mutlaq Al-Qahtani, had successfully convinced Somalia to drop the case against Kenya during his mediation on the diplomatic fallout between the two countries.
The ICJ concluded the case in March and is expected to issue its verdict in the coming months.
Kenya withdrew from the oral hearings citing bias and inadequate preparations, but the court did not entertain its prayers for further delay.
Somalia announced Thursday it was resuming diplomatic relations with Kenya, and it had since emerged the Qatari regime mediated the negotiations.