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The article features an interview between Lally Weymouth, a senior associate editor for The Washington Post, and Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, the President of Somalia. The main topic of discussion is the fight against Al-Shabaab, a terrorist organization linked to al-Qaeda, and the role of the United States in supporting Somalia in this effort.

President Mohamud emphasizes the importance of the US-Somalia relationship and expresses hope that the new Trump administration will continue to support Somalia in its fight against terrorism. He opposes the recognition of Somaliland as an independent country, citing the potential for border changes and the precedent it could set for other African countries.

The president discusses the progress made in the fight against Al-Shabaab, with the help of US support, including intelligence gathering, logistical support, and aerial support. He acknowledges that the fight is still difficult but notes that Al-Shabaab has been degraded considerably.

President Mohamud explains to the American public why it is essential to invest in the fight against Al-Shabaab, highlighting the global threat posed by the terrorist group and the potential impact on international trade routes. He also mentions the relationship between Al-Shabaab and the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen, which poses a threat to shipping lanes.

The president expresses concern about the potential withdrawal of US troops from Somalia, which could hinder the progress made in the fight against Al-Shabaab. He requests that President Trump increase the number of US advisers and consultants supporting the training of Somali special forces to eliminate Al-Shabaab.

Finally, President Mohamud expresses his desire to meet with President Trump to provide a more accurate picture of Somalia, which he believes is often misrepresented in the media. He hopes to leave a legacy of Somalia free from Al-Shabaab, a democratic country, and a long-term partner of the United States.

Key points:

  • President Mohamud opposes the recognition of Somaliland as an independent country

  • The fight against al-Shabaab is still ongoing, but progress has been made with US support

  • Al-Shabaab poses a global threat and could impact international trade routes

    The US has provided significant support to Somalia, including $1 billion in military and humanitarian aid in 2023

  • President Mohamud requests that President Trump increase US support to eliminate Al-Shabaab

  • The president hopes to meet with President Trump to provide a more accurate picture of Somalia and its relationship with the US.

The full piece is as follows:

President of Somalia: Trump Must Help Defeat Global Terrorism

President of Somalia, Trump Must Help Defeat Global Terrorism
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud speaks during an interview in Mogadishu, Somalia, on Feb. 20. (Feisal Omar/Reuters)

Somalia’s president urges Trump to stay in the fight against al-Shabab to secure global trade.

By Lally Weymouth

The al-Qaeda-linked Islamist militant group Al-Shabaab, which operates in Somalia, remains one of the most dangerous terrorist organizations active today. Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, 69, is serving his second term as president. His presidency has been defined by the struggle against these terrorists. Up until now, the United States has been contributing significantly to this fight, with both money and troops.

The Post’s Lally Weymouth spoke with Mohamud on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland. Excerpts:

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Lally Weymouth: What do you hope your country’s relationship will be with the new Trump administration?

Hassan Sheikh Mohamud: We always have a very good relationship with the United States. We don’t know what the new leadership will come up (with), but we do not expect something bad. Some people around President Donald Trump want him to recognize Somaliland [an autonomous part of Somalia that has governed itself since 1991] as an independent country.

Do you oppose the recognition of Somaliland?

Yes, we do. Somalia is one. It became an independent state in 1960. Somaliland was a British protectorate. The southern part of Somalia was an Italian colony. In 1960, both sides became independent and became the Somali Republic. Then the civil war occurred in 1991, and Somaliland seceded in that year from Somalia.

Although Somaliland has functioned as an autonomous region and has had elections, the other African states oppose its recognition presumably because they fear that it might lead to parts of their own countries breaking away. Is that the real argument against recognition?

If the borders of Africa are changed and new borders are developed, that is going to be a very serious problem. Yes, they have had elections in Somaliland, but elections are not, in my view, the criteria for secession.

When you came to office, you said one of your main aims was to defeat Al-Shabaab. How do you think the fight is going?

We have been fighting Al-Shabaab for the past 18 years militarily. We also fight Al-Shabaab with money and financial restrictions. Of course, Al-Shabaab is not completely defeated, but we have pushed and degraded them considerably and that was done by our own forces. Today, we are in control of hundreds of kilometers where Al-Shabaab dominated for years.

But the fight against Al-Shabaab is still difficult.

It’s difficult because we have a limited capability. After two years of continuous war, we have some level of fatigue. But we are reorganizing our forces now, and there is a new campaign going on as I speak to you.

Have you really made progress?

We have. The United States witnessed that. They were with us. They are our partner. The United States is supporting us in intelligence gathering, logistical support, aerial support, surveillance, and sometimes even preempting certain attacks of Al-Shabaab on our forces. However, there are no American soldiers fighting on the ground.

To the American public, how would you explain why it is important to invest in the fight against this terrorist group in such a faraway country?

Al-Shabaab is linked with al-Qaeda. And they have an international, global agenda.

But why should the United States help Somalia?

Because of our fight against Al-Shabaab, these terrorists don’t have the chance to run their networks in Europe and America. Before they had suicide bombers in London and in many other parts of Europe. Americans have preempted some strikes that Al-Shabaab was organizing within America. So Al-Shabaab is not a threat to Somalia only. That’s the reason America is supporting us.

In 2023, the United States gave your country approximately $1 billion in military and humanitarian aid, am I correct?

Not all in security assistance, much of this money was humanitarian.

Could Al-Shabaab impact the shipping lanes?

Yes. A more stable and secure Somalia will help secure the global trade routes.

Another threat to the region and to shipping are the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen.

Al-Shabaab and the Houthis have a very good relationship. They are exchanging weapons and training.

President Trump pulled U.S. troops out of Somalia during his first term and then President Joe Biden sent them back in 2022. What happens if President Trump pulls them out again?

What we ask of President Trump is not to pull out the American advisers and consultants who are supporting the training of our special forces. Indeed, we are requesting that the United States increase the number so that we can eliminate Al-Shabaab while President Trump is in office.

Can you degrade Al-Shabaab further without the United States? President Trump seems uninterested in overseas engagements, like the one in Ukraine.

This is different. Ukraine is a war between two countries. But fighting terrorist groups, which have no international link, is different. We need support. President Trump is a man of action. He does what he says. We hope that he will look at Somalia.

Will you go meet him?

That would be ideal. I would give him a good picture of Somalia. Americans are shaped by movies like “Black Hawk Down” or “Captain Phillips.” These are indicators that Somalia is a bad place, but Somalia isn’t a bad place.

What do you want your legacy to be?

We want a Somalia free from Al-Shabaab, we want Somalia to be a democratic country and a long-term partner of the United States.


Lally Weymouth

Lally WeymouthLally Graham Weymouth is a senior associate editor at The Washington Post. She has been conducting interviews with world leaders for many years for The Post and before that for Newsweek. Weymouth has spent significant time in the Middle East, conducting exclusive interviews with Saddam Hussein, Colonel Muammar Gaddafi, Syrian Presidents Hafez al-Assad and Bashar al-Assad, Egyptian President Abdel Fatah al-Sissi, and Jordan’s King Adullah. She has interviewed every Israeli prime minister since 1981.
Weymouth also conducted the last interview with Pakistan’s Benazir Bhutto before her assassination in December 2007. Weymouth edited and compiled “Thomas Jefferson: The Man, His World, His Influence,” a collection which includes contributions from leading Jefferson scholars published in 1973. She is also the author of “America in 1876: The Way We Were,” which was published by Random House in 1976.
In 2015, she received the May Chidiac Foundation’s Antoine Choueiri Special Tribute for Lifetime Achievement. In September 2016, the Citizens Union of the City of New York honored her with the Civil Society Builder Award. She currently serves as a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the Partnership for New York City, the Economic Club of New York, and is a member of the Board of the Asia Society Policy Institute’s Council.
Follow on X@LallyWeymouth