Addis Ababa (Dawan Africa)- Puntland President Said Abdullahi Deni’s recent high-level visit to the headquarters of Ethiopian Airlines in Addis Ababa is making waves in Horn of Africa diplomatic circles, not merely for its aviation ambitions—but for what it signals about the region’s evolving power dynamics.
The meeting, which brought President Deni face-to-face with senior Ethiopian Airlines executives, focused on expanding air connectivity, modernizing airport infrastructure in Puntland, and increasing direct flights to cities such as Garowe and Bossaso. Ethiopian Airlines, Africa’s largest state-owned carrier, has operated flights to Garowe since 2019 and is seen as a critical conduit for Puntland’s external economic and political outreach.
But the implications go beyond runways and routes.
At a time when Puntland has formally frozen ties with Somalia’s Federal Government over contested issues such as power-sharing, elections, and natural resources, Deni’s direct diplomacy with Ethiopian institutions is raising eyebrows in Mogadishu. While Puntland has long championed its federal rights, this meeting—with a foreign, state-owned airline—has sparked speculation that the region is testing the boundaries of Somalia’s foreign policy framework.
“This is not just about aviation. It’s about positioning,” says political analyst, Ahmed Abdul-hayi. “Puntland is signaling that it’s willing to engage regionally on its own terms—especially with countries like Ethiopia that have a growing interest in Red Sea access and Somali port infrastructure.”
The timing of the visit is also sensitive. Ethiopia’s controversial attempts earlier this year to secure port access through a memorandum of understanding with Somaliland—offering shares in Ethiopian Airlines in exchange—collapsed under regional pressure and legal ambiguity. That failed deal continues to cast a long shadow over Ethiopia’s engagements in Somalia.
President Deni’s visit, though framed as developmental, has raised new questions: Was this simply a technical meeting about air traffic and airport upgrades? Or did it touch on broader strategic interests, including Ethiopia’s ongoing ambitions in the Red Sea corridor?
For now, Puntland officials are tight-lipped about the finer details. A brief statement from the Puntland State House confirmed that discussions involved infrastructure, training, and potential new routes—an agenda aligned with the region’s economic vision. But observers note that such engagements are rarely isolated from the broader geopolitical context.
With Ethiopia eyeing deeper influence across Somalia’s federal states—and with Puntland increasingly assertive about its internal and external autonomy—the visit underscores a shifting reality: Somalia’s regions are no longer passive actors but are actively shaping cross-border partnerships that reflect both opportunity and political intent.
