Kenya And Uganda To Mediate Ethiopia-somalia Dispute

Kenyas President William Ruto said on Saturday he and Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni would help mediate a dispute between Ethiopia and Somalia, which was threatening the stability of the region.

Landlocked Ethiopia, which has thousands of troops in Somalia to fight al Qaeda-linked insurgents, has fallen out with the Mogadishu government over its plans to build a port in the breakaway region of Somaliland, in exchange for possible recognition of its sovereignty.

Somaliland has struggled to gain international recognition despite governing itself and enjoying comparative peace and stability since declaring independence in 1991.

The spat has drawn Somalia closer to Egypt, which has quarreled with Ethiopia for years over Addis Ababas construction of a vast hydro dam on the Nile River, and Eritrea, another of Ethiopias foes.

Somaliland has struggled to gain international recognition despite governing itself and enjoying comparative peace and stability since declaring independence in 1991.