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| Africa Horn | |
| Puntland Govt rebuffs Federal GovernmentÂ’s coastal agreement | |
| 2013-08-05 | |
GAROWE, Somalia -– Puntland government in northern Somalia has rebuffed a coastal agreement in which the Federal government of Somalia signed with the Atlantic Marine and Offshore Group on Saturday, Garowe Online reports.
The government called on the contract signed on July 30, between the Defence Minister of the Somali Federal Government and the Dutch Company Atlantic Marine and Offshore Group with President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud present “unacceptable” and “unsuitable in Puntland state” according to the statement. Continuing, the statement read: “The agreement clearly undermines the Regional Somali States (Kampala Process Members) efforts of maintaining Somali Sovereignty and control over its territorial waters”. Puntland’s statement with the signature of Puntland Minister of Maritime transport, Ports and Counter Piracy Eng. Saeed Mohamed Rageh further noted that Puntland Government will not honour such agreements as the recent coastal agreement violates the points documented under Somali Maritime Resource and Security Strategy agreement which was agreed upon by the country’s regional states. Somalia’s Puntland government has been enforcing its authority in waters and deployed its coast guard into Puntland waters to protect the exclusive economic zone, according to ministry officials. The Somali Federal Government’s coastal contract with the Atlantic Marine and Offshore Group allows the Dutch Company to monitor and patrol the country’s Exclusive Economic Zone by using Long Range Patrol Vessels. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |