what's next for the United States
troy prouty* | 11.12.2001 19:22
Reports are surfacing that Washington is finalizing an agreement to move intelligence and naval assets to the key Somali port of Berbera, near the Arabian Sea. Somalia appears to be a prime location for further anti-terrorist campaigns. Al Qaeda members have been involved in the country since at least 1993, and more may seek sanctuary there after fleeing Afghanistan.
Using the base at the northwestern city of Berbera would give the United States several strategic advantages in conducting military operations throughout East Africa and the Middle East. However, in the process, Washington will also contribute to the de facto partitioning of Somalia.
Somalia has been without a central government since 1991, and the resulting instability makes it an attractive location for al Qaeda members to operate. Somali clan leaders, often known as warlords, have divided the country into competing fiefdoms. In the north, leaders in Somaliland and Puntland have established semi-autonomous governments. In the south, and especially in Mogadishu, warlords continue to compete for territory.
Ethiopian troops last month crossed into Puntland, where radical Islamists were trying to extend their influence, to support a power grab by recently ousted regional leader Col. Abdullahi Yussuf Ahmed. Both the Ethiopian government and Yussuf oppose Muslim extremists in Somalia.
During the fighting, the troops chased many suspected Islamists out of the northern city of Boosaaso. Many of the Somali volunteers who went to assist Taliban and al Qaeda forces in Afghanistan reportedly came from Boosaaso. Somalia's remaining extremist groups are located in the south, close to the Kenyan border.
While Ethiopian troops are driving Islamic militants out of the north, it appears that Washington is also making a deal to secure access to Berbera in Somaliland. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, a German daily, reported in November that U.S. and German officials toured Berbera and were negotiating to use the port and airfield.
London-based Arabic daily Al-Zaman also reported a similar story Dec. 3, though it said only U.S. forces would use the facilities. A U.N. publication later that week reported Germany would likely make a basing agreement with nearby Djibouti.
Berbera has several advantages for Washington. The deepwater port, developed by the Soviet navy in the 1970s, is one of the best in the Indian Ocean. The airfield also has one of the longest runways in North Africa. Washington once stationed assets at Berbera in the early 1980s when tensions in Iran forced Washington to look for new bases in the Middle East.
The United States was interested in the region even before Sept. 11. Washington last year was trying to persuade the government of Yemen to allow U.S. warships to dock at the port of Aden -- right across the water from Berbera -- before the terrorist attack on the USS Cole derailed negotiations.
Stationing U.S. assets at Berbera gives the same benefits to Washington without it having to negotiate the minefield of Yemeni politics. In addition, the United States would have a difficult time persuading the Yemeni government to permit port access at Aden as Washington is considering military operations against militant Islamists in Yemen.
Berbera's location can make it a focal point for the U.S. anti-terror campaign outside of Afghanistan. Southern Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Kenya and Tanzania are all centers of al Qaeda activity and within striking distance of Berbera. The port and airfield could support active military strikes on those countries or it could act as a deterrent to al Qaeda operatives, making them think twice about basing operations in those locations.
The United States is also considering secondary sites in Somalia such as the city of Baidoa, 150 miles southwest of Mogadishu. Local radio reported Dec. 10 that nine American military officers had visited the city recently and met with senior members of the Rahanweyn Resistance Army (RRA), an Ethiopian-backed paramilitary force in the south.
With the United States at Berbera and German ships at Djibouti, it appears that Washington and its allies are attempting a sustained effort to cut off al Qaeda's communications and supply lines through the Arabian Sea, one of the group's primary transport routes. Ships specially designed to intercept communications coming into or out of a relatively limited location, like a city or a coastline, can also use the same naval bases.
As the United States plans theater-level military operations, it also appears to be shaping the future of Somalia. Al-Zaman reported that Washington is supporting Somaliland President Muhammad Ibrahim Egal by allowing him to declare himself president of Somalia. The report may be an overstatement, but Somaliland will at least enjoy financial and political support from the United States in exchange for access to the port. This will accelerate the region's move toward autonomy, or even independence, and hurt any chances of a united Somalia.
Using the base at the northwestern city of Berbera would give the United States several strategic advantages in conducting military operations throughout East Africa and the Middle East. However, in the process, Washington will also contribute to the de facto partitioning of Somalia.
Somalia has been without a central government since 1991, and the resulting instability makes it an attractive location for al Qaeda members to operate. Somali clan leaders, often known as warlords, have divided the country into competing fiefdoms. In the north, leaders in Somaliland and Puntland have established semi-autonomous governments. In the south, and especially in Mogadishu, warlords continue to compete for territory.
Ethiopian troops last month crossed into Puntland, where radical Islamists were trying to extend their influence, to support a power grab by recently ousted regional leader Col. Abdullahi Yussuf Ahmed. Both the Ethiopian government and Yussuf oppose Muslim extremists in Somalia.
During the fighting, the troops chased many suspected Islamists out of the northern city of Boosaaso. Many of the Somali volunteers who went to assist Taliban and al Qaeda forces in Afghanistan reportedly came from Boosaaso. Somalia's remaining extremist groups are located in the south, close to the Kenyan border.
While Ethiopian troops are driving Islamic militants out of the north, it appears that Washington is also making a deal to secure access to Berbera in Somaliland. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, a German daily, reported in November that U.S. and German officials toured Berbera and were negotiating to use the port and airfield.
London-based Arabic daily Al-Zaman also reported a similar story Dec. 3, though it said only U.S. forces would use the facilities. A U.N. publication later that week reported Germany would likely make a basing agreement with nearby Djibouti.
Berbera has several advantages for Washington. The deepwater port, developed by the Soviet navy in the 1970s, is one of the best in the Indian Ocean. The airfield also has one of the longest runways in North Africa. Washington once stationed assets at Berbera in the early 1980s when tensions in Iran forced Washington to look for new bases in the Middle East.
The United States was interested in the region even before Sept. 11. Washington last year was trying to persuade the government of Yemen to allow U.S. warships to dock at the port of Aden -- right across the water from Berbera -- before the terrorist attack on the USS Cole derailed negotiations.
Stationing U.S. assets at Berbera gives the same benefits to Washington without it having to negotiate the minefield of Yemeni politics. In addition, the United States would have a difficult time persuading the Yemeni government to permit port access at Aden as Washington is considering military operations against militant Islamists in Yemen.
Berbera's location can make it a focal point for the U.S. anti-terror campaign outside of Afghanistan. Southern Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, Kenya and Tanzania are all centers of al Qaeda activity and within striking distance of Berbera. The port and airfield could support active military strikes on those countries or it could act as a deterrent to al Qaeda operatives, making them think twice about basing operations in those locations.
The United States is also considering secondary sites in Somalia such as the city of Baidoa, 150 miles southwest of Mogadishu. Local radio reported Dec. 10 that nine American military officers had visited the city recently and met with senior members of the Rahanweyn Resistance Army (RRA), an Ethiopian-backed paramilitary force in the south.
With the United States at Berbera and German ships at Djibouti, it appears that Washington and its allies are attempting a sustained effort to cut off al Qaeda's communications and supply lines through the Arabian Sea, one of the group's primary transport routes. Ships specially designed to intercept communications coming into or out of a relatively limited location, like a city or a coastline, can also use the same naval bases.
As the United States plans theater-level military operations, it also appears to be shaping the future of Somalia. Al-Zaman reported that Washington is supporting Somaliland President Muhammad Ibrahim Egal by allowing him to declare himself president of Somalia. The report may be an overstatement, but Somaliland will at least enjoy financial and political support from the United States in exchange for access to the port. This will accelerate the region's move toward autonomy, or even independence, and hurt any chances of a united Somalia.
troy prouty*