Somaliland President and Israeli PM hold “high-level meeting,” officially sign a Strategic Declaration on Cooperation
Abdullahi says the agreement “lays the foundation for a lasting strategic relationship, strengthening cooperation between the two countries”
Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi met with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu in Israel Monday, in what both sides described as a landmark meeting moving to new phase in diplomatic and strategic relations between the two states. The visit came months after Israel formally recognized Somaliland as an independent state on December 26, 2025, a decision Abdullahi called a confirmation of the "political, legal and historical reality" of Somaliland's three-decade record of self-governance.
The two leaders held high-level meetings and signed a Strategic Declaration on Cooperation covering economy, security, technology, investment and social development. Abdullahi also presented Netanyahu with Somaliland's National Medal of Honor in recognition of Israel's recognition of the breakaway territory.
Somaliland has sought international recognition since declaring independence from Somalia in 1991.
During his visit, Abdullahi also met with Israeli FM Gideon Sa'ar, to official open the Somaliland Embassy in Jerusalem on Monday. The move makes the embassy the eighth to operate in Israel's capital. It joins those of the US, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay and Fiji, and is the third embassy to open in Jerusalem during Saar's tenure.
During their meeting, Sa'ar revealed Monday that he met in October last year with the President of Somaliland, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, at the Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem, where they established ties between the two countries, before Israel's public recognition of Somaliland.
Sa'ar said, "I will always be proud of the privilege I had in writing the first pages of the story of our relationship. I am sure this partnership will continue and grow stronger."
Foreign Minister Sa'ar added and thanked the President of Somaliland for opening the Somaliland embassy in Jerusalem: "I believe that more countries will do so in the near future. Indeed, there are challenges in building the relationship between Israel and Somaliland. Unfortunately, there are many who are trying to thwart itm but they will not succeed." In response, the President of Somaliland praised the minister for "his important role in advancing relations between the countries."
As previously reported, last December the Ministry of Foreign Affairs permitted the publication that, as part of the intensive secret negotiations that had been conducted for months between Israel and Somaliland, the President of Somaliland made a secret visit to Israel in October, during which he met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, and Mossad chief Dedi Barnea.
The Foreign Ministry also said that Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar conducted secret talks with Somaliland for several months, during which he met several times with the entourage of President Abdullahi.