Mogadishu (Somalia Today) — Turkey has appointed Ferhat Alkan as its new ambassador to Somalia, replacing Alper Aktaş, as Ankara manages one of its most important African partnerships during a deepening political crisis in Mogadishu.
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced a new round of diplomatic appointments on Tuesday, assigning ambassadors and senior diplomats to several overseas missions, including Somalia.
Turkish media reported that Aktaş, who had served as ambassador to Somalia since 2024, has been named ambassador to North Macedonia.
Alkan will take over the Mogadishu post at a sensitive moment for Somalia, where tensions over President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s mandate, constitutional changes and the country’s electoral model have triggered violence in the capital.
Deep ties
Turkey has been one of Somalia’s closest foreign partners since 2011, when President Recep Tayyip Erdogan visited Mogadishu during a devastating famine, helping launch a new phase in relations between the two countries.
Ankara has since built schools, hospitals and infrastructure projects, offered scholarships to Somali students and trained Somali security forces at its military base in Mogadishu, one of Turkey’s largest overseas military facilities.
The two countries strengthened their partnership further in 2024, when Somalia and Turkey signed a defence and economic cooperation agreement.
They later signed oil and gas exploration deals covering Somali land and maritime blocks, placing Turkey at the centre of Somalia’s long-term energy ambitions.
Turkey has also expanded its diplomatic role in the Horn of Africa, including by hosting talks between Somalia and Ethiopia after tensions rose over Addis Ababa’s controversial sea-access agreement with Somaliland, a breakaway region that Somalia considers part of its territory.
That broad relationship gives the Mogadishu posting added weight, with Turkey involved not only in security and development but also in some of the most sensitive political and regional questions facing Somalia.
Political standoff
Alkan’s appointment comes as foreign partners watch Somalia’s political standoff with growing concern after clashes in Mogadishu between government forces and armed groups linked to opposition figures.
The dispute centres on Mohamud’s mandate, proposed constitutional changes and Somalia’s electoral model.
Opposition leaders say Mohamud’s original four-year mandate expired on May 15 and accuse his government of using contested constitutional and electoral changes to extend its time in office without broad political consensus.
The government says it is trying to move Somalia towards direct elections, arguing that one-person, one-vote polls would end years of indirect power-sharing arrangements.
The dispute spilt into violence last week when government forces clashed with armed groups linked to opposition politicians in parts of Mogadishu, including Howlwadaag and Abdiasis districts.
Former president Sharif Sheikh Ahmed and former prime minister Hassan Ali Khaire accused security forces of attacking opposition-linked locations, while the government blamed armed groups for endangering civilians and said it had restored order.
The United Nations, the African Union, and Somalia’s international partners urged Somali leaders to resolve the crisis through dialogue and to avoid further violence.
A source told Somalia Today that Turkish officials had been involved in efforts to mediate between the federal government and opposition figures, underscoring Ankara’s growing diplomatic role beyond security, energy, and development cooperation.
