Defense Minister Israel Katz met Wednesday with Somaliland President Dr. Abdirahman Mohamed Abdilahi and other senior officials to discuss ways to deepen security, economic, and political cooperation between the two countries.
During the meeting, Katz emphasized that Israel and Somaliland are two democracies sharing common values, committed to combating terrorist elements in the region, strengthening regional stability, and ensuring the security of their citizens.
Katz noted that over the years, significant security ties and close cooperation have existed between Israel and Somaliland, some conducted covertly, and expressed his desire to expand them and take them to new heights in the fields of security, intelligence, technology, and innovation.
"Israel and Somaliland share a long-standing friendship based on common interests, democratic values, and commitment to security and stability," he said. "For many years, we collaborated under the radar on a series of operations that will remain secret. Now we are determined to take our security cooperation to new heights - for the benefit of both peoples and regional stability."
The Israeli delegation included the Deputy Head of the Political-Military Department at the Defense Ministry, the Deputy Director-General of the Ministry, the Head of Planning Division of the IDF, Israel’s designated Ambassador to Somaliland, and other senior officials.
From Somaliland, participants included the Minister of Defense, the Minister for Presidential Affairs, the Commander of the Somaliland Army, the Head of the President’s Office, the Deputy Head of the National Intelligence Agency, and Somaliland’s Ambassador to Israel.