Libyan policy in the Horn of Africa

I was invited to give remarks on Libyan policy in the Horn of Africa at a workshop on Libya’s relations with Africa on Oct. 25.

What is striking about Libya’s relations with Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia/Somaliland is the relative lack of economic interaction but a long history of engagement at the political level, especially efforts in the past 10 years to try to resolve, almost always without success, interstate and internal disputes in the region.

In several cases, Libya has been accused of taking sides in interstate disputes, making it difficult to maintain cordial relations with the other party. Since no country in the Horn wants to offend Qaddafi, however, Libya regularly manages to recover from political setbacks.

Libyan Policy in the Horn of Africa