The Importance of Stability in Somalia

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The country of Somalia has a long and jaded history of instability dating all the way back to the mid 1800’s. There has never, in the existence of the country, been any viable form of government. There are many reasons for the United States to have a vested interest in this area of the world. Somalia has been and is currently known to be a hot bed for such terrorist organizations as Al-Shabaab and Al- Qaeda. Also, with the recent discovery of oil reserves in Somalia, stability in the region is of even greater importance.

Since the fall of Dictator Mohammed Siad Barre, Somalia has been without any centralized form of government (UPI.com, 2012). Since then the country has been caught in a whirlwind of warring clans. That and a series of famines have resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people. The lack of central government has also resulted in three significant separatist movements named Somaliland, Puntland, and Southwestern Somalia.

Somaliland had separate independence from Great Britain prior to union with Somalia in 1960, which they claim was never ratified. They declared independence from Somalia in 1991. The international Community does not recognize their independence.

A council of elders proclaimed Puntland as an autonomous state of Somalia in 1998. They do not seek recognition as a separate nation. They seek to unify all Somali people and adhere to a federal system of government. They seek to improve limpidity in government.

Founded by Hasan Muhammad Nur Shatigadud, leader of the Rahanweyn Resistance Army, Southwestern Somalia is a self-proclaimed state founded to show discontent with the Mogadishu-based Transition National Government. This was done to counter the impact of the Somalia Reconciliation an...

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...alis to come together. It is paramount to the Unites States and its interests that the country of Somalia becomes stable.

Works Cited

Somalia Smart Book. (2011, February). Retrieved March 18, 2012, from IKN: https://ikn.army.mil/apps/dms/search/getDocument.cfm?id=40765

(2012, March 1). Retrieved March 18, 2012, from UPI.com: http://www.upi.com/Business_News/Energy-Resources/2012/03/01/Somalias-oil-prospects-add-new-dangers/UPI-81601330635213/

Clapper, D. o. (2011, February 10). Worldwide Threats. (H. S. Committee, Interviewer)

Piombo, J. (2007, January). Terrorism and U.S. Counter-Terrorism Programs in Africa: An Overview. (V. I. Strategic Insights, Interviewer)

Ploch, L. (2011, July 22). fas.org. Retrieved March 20, 2012, from Africa Command: U.S. Strategic Interests and the Role of the U.S. Military in Africa: http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/natsec/RL34003.pdf

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