The leaders of Somalia and breakaway state Somaliland met Sunday in a bit to renew dialogue, with Somaliland calling for a "two-state" process and defending its right to independence.
The meeting took place in Djibouti, chaired by the country's President Ismail Omar Guelleh, and was attended by Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed.
Abiy, who is leading a drive for peace and integration in the troubled Horn of Africa region, first called an impromptu meeting between the two leaders in February in a bid to revive talks which broke down in 2015.
"We know that not of all the problems will be solved here today but we also have to remember that just being open to discussions and be willing to get the men and women you lead closer together is the ultimate goal," Guelleh said in his speech, posted on Facebook.
Somalia's President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, nicknamed 'Farmajo', is "committed to all efforts to bring about fruitful talks with Somaliland," said presidential spokesman Abdinur Mohamed Ahmed in a statement.
Somaliland president Musa Bihi in his speech laid out the background of the dispute, from Somaliland's independence from Britain in 1960 to its voluntary joining with Somalia just days later.
He cited the oppression of Somaliland's people under Mogadihu's rule, and "widespread war crimes" committed against it.
- 'Peaceful co-existence' -
Somaliland declared independence in 1991, and while anarchic southern Somalia has been riven by years of fighting between multiple militia forces and Islamist violence, Somaliland has enjoyed relative peace.
However it has never achieved the international recognition it desires.
"Somaliland remains committed to a peaceful co-existence with Somalia. However, Somaliland insists in that the dialogue should be a two-state process with a substantive agenda that addresses the core issues of the dispute," said Bihi.
"We cordially propose that a serious mediation mechanism and a guarantor should be in place for this new round of dialogue."
Prior talks between the two collapsed in 2015 and relations have deteriorated, with clashes erupting between Somaliland forces and those in neighbouring Puntland -- a semi-autonomous region of Somalia, in 2018.
Tensions also deepened in 2018 after the Dubai-based DP World struck a deal giving Ethiopia a 19-percent stake in Somaliland's Berbera port.
Somalia saw this as a violation of its sovereignty.
Both sides in 2018 took measures to hinder travel between their territories, according to the ICG report.
Somaliland stamped Somalia passports with a visa, on the grounds that Somaliland was a separate country, while Somali officials began confiscating passports with these stamps.
In 2019, Somalia lodged a protest with Kenya after it referred to Somaliland as a "country" following talks between the two.
Omar Mahmood, senior Somalia analyst with the International Crisis Group, said the timing of the talks was "odd" given Somalia was in the process of organising elections.
"It is hard to see what can be achieved. The positions are so entrenched and so diametrically opposed," he said.
He pointed out that when the two leaders met in February, Bihi faced a "significant backlash" at home, highlighting the difficulty facing any mediation process.
Abiy has pushed hard to resolve outstanding areas of conflict in the region.
The Ethiopian premier received the Nobel Peace Prize last year for his efforts to resolve a long-running conflict between Ethiopia and its neighbouring foe Eritrea.
He has also stepped in in conflicts in South Sudan, Sudan, between Somalia and Eritrea, and Djibouti and Eritrea.
str-fb/pvh
DP WORLD