Growing transatlantic rift over air strikes

The European Commission has condemned US air-strikes against alleged al-Qaeda fighters in southern Somalia, evidence of a growing transatlantic rift over the future of the country.

After the first wave of US air strikes on Tuesday (9 January), a Commission spokesperson criticised the US strikes. "In the long run this kind of action is not helpful," he said.

Privately EU diplomats also criticised the US’s reliance on a military solution.

The EU and US appear increasingly divided over how to establish a central government in Somalia after 16 years of virtual anarchy. EU diplomats fear Washington is too focused on defeating Islamic militants at the expense of long-term stability.

The EU is putting pressure on the Somali government to reach out to its political rivals, including those allied with groups linked to al-Qaeda, in order to avoid further bloodshed in the country and a broader regional war.

Following the overthrow of Mogadishu’s ruling Islamists by the Ethiopian army earlier this month, the internationally-backed transitional government has returned to the capital for the first time in more than three years.

Until the Ethiopian invasion, the transitional government had controlled little of the country, while the now-dispersed Union of Islamic Courts controlled the capital and swathes of the south of the country.

But some of the transitional government’s most influential backers, particularly the US, are uneasy about engaging with factions of a group that is linked to al-Qaeda.

"It is important that there be as broad a [political] base as possible," said one diplomat from a large EU member state, speaking after discussions by EU ambassadors on Friday (5 January).

The price tag for an EU mission to Somalia is likely to be substantial. A UN mission to Somalia between 1993 and 1995 involved 15,000-28,000 troops and cost around $1.6 billion (€1.2bn).

EU foreign ministers are expected to discuss the issue when they meet in Brussels on 22 January.

The European Commission has condemned US air-strikes against alleged al-Qaeda fighters in southern Somalia, evidence of a growing transatlantic rift over the future of the country.