Somaliland Opens New Representative Office Premises in Taipei

Somaliland opened the new premises of its representative office in Taipei on June 12, relocating the office to the city’s Tianmu district, as officials from both sides pledged to expand cooperation.

The Republic of Somaliland Representative Office in Taiwan held an opening ceremony at the new site, with Somaliland representative to Taiwan Mahmoud Adam Jama Galaal, and Taiwan deputy foreign minister François Wu attending.

According to Taiwan’s Central News Agency (CNA), the office moved from Taipei’s Neihu District to Tianmu, which is home to many foreign diplomatic missions. Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists the office as the Republic of Somaliland Representative Office in Taiwan.

Galaal thanked Taiwan’s Foreign Ministry for helping with the relocation and said the new location, near other foreign missions in Taiwan, would help the office promote exchanges, cooperation, and diplomatic affairs, according to CNA.

Cooperation Areas

Wu said Taiwan and Somaliland have continued to deepen cooperation since opening reciprocal representative offices in 2020.

The cooperation has covered agriculture, medical care, talent training, information and communications technology, trade, energy, and infrastructure, Wu said, according to CNA.

Wu described Somaliland as Taiwan’s first major partner in East Africa and said the cooperation model could serve as a reference for other countries in the region. He said he expected the two sides to deepen cooperation in maritime security, humanitarian assistance, and infrastructure.

Galaal said cooperation between Taiwan and Somaliland has produced results across education, health care, agriculture, technology, energy, and maritime affairs, according to CNA.

The ceremony was also attended by foreign representatives in Taiwan, including Paraguay’s ambassador, Darío Filártiga Ruiz Díaz, CNA reported.

Ties Date to 2020

Taiwan announced on July 1, 2020, that it had reached an agreement with Somaliland to establish reciprocal representative offices, according to Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The agreement followed the signing of a bilateral protocol in Taipei on Feb. 26, 2020, by then-Taiwan Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu and Somaliland Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Yasin Hagi Mohamoud.

Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs currently lists the Taiwan Representative Office in the Republic of Somaliland as located in Hargeisa, the Somaliland capital.

Somaliland declared independence from Somalia in 1991 and operates as a de facto self-governing entity, though it lacks widespread international recognition. Somalia continues to claim Somaliland as part of its territory.

Wu said at the June 12 office ceremony that he looked forward to “the steady deepening of bilateral collaboration” in maritime security, humanitarian assistance, and infrastructure, according to CNA.