Somalia President Pledges To Accept Only ICJ Ruling On Kenya Maritime Dispute

Somalia President Mohamed Farmajo on Thursday announced that Kenya’s call for maritime boundary dispute has been rejected, reported Bloomberg.

The two countries are fighting over maritime boundary in the Indian Ocean. The area in question is a 100,000 square kilometer (38,610 square mile) triangular patch created by projecting the Kenya-Somalia border eastward into the Indian Ocean. The territory has a large deposit of oil and gas.

 After bilateral negotiations did not achieve an agreement for peaceful cohesion, Somalia sued Kenya at the ICJ in the Hague in 2014, urging the court to define the boundary as per the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other international sea laws.

While addressing the UN Assembly, Mr. Farmajo said that the matter will be handled by the International Court of Justice. He said Somalia, a member of the United Nations and a party to the statue of the court, is committed to see through the judicial settlement process.

“As a matter of international law, the court’s judgment will be binding on Kenya,” Mr. Farmajo said.

He added that Somalia will go with the court’s final judgement and accept the outcome on the boundary.

“We trust that, when that judgment is issued and the boundary is established, a lasting settlement of this longstanding dispute will finally be achieved,” Mr. Farmajo said.

This was Mr. Farmaajo’s first UN General Assembly speech after his election in 2017.

Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta had previously emphasized on dialogue as the best option to find a solution for the maritime dispute with Somalia.

Mr. Kenyatta said he believed dialogue is the best and amicable way for finding the best and positive solution.

The Hague based ICJ court is set to enter full hearing of the Somalia vs Kenya dispute case between November 4 and 8.