BREAKING: Horn of Africa: US Proxy War in Somalia Veers Towards Regional
Conflict
Ethiopia's anticipated invasion marks scramble for territory with Kenyan
rival
by Finian Cunningham
http://www.globalresearch.ca/coverStoryPictures2/28443.jpg
<
http://www.globalresearch.ca> Global Research, January 1, 2012
The conflict in Somalia has been raised to dramatically higher stakes at the
weekend after Ethiopian troops occupied a central town, routing Al Shabab
militants in fighting that claimed dozens of lives.
The Ethiopian military entered the town of Beledweyne near its border on
Saturday morning along with Somali troops belonging to the Western-backed
Transitional Federal Government. The latter has been battling with Al Shabab
Islamic militants for the past two years, but has only managed to maintain
tenuous control of the capital, Mogadishu. Large areas of the country,
especially to the south, have been under the command of the militants.
Earlier reports of Ethiopian troops having invaded Somalia with heavy armour
were denied by the government in Addis Ababa. But the weekend offensive now
confirms Ethiopia's involvement in its neighbour to the east.
Almost every country in the Horn of Africa has a military presence in
war-torn Somalia. In mid-October Kenyan forces mounted a large-scale
invasion of Somalia with thousands of troops backed up with tanks and
fighter jets. Nearly three months on, Kenyan forces are still battling with
Al Shabab militants mainly in the territory south of Mogadishu on Kenya's
north-eastern border.
Last month, a contingent of troops from Djibouti arrived in Mogadishu,
officially welcomed by the Somali government to join forces from Burundi and
Uganda, which have been present in Somalia for the past two years as part of
an African Union (AU) "peacekeeping mission" to combat the militants.
In addition to these contingencies is the involvement of the United States
and France. Washington and Paris have given military support to the Kenyan
and AU forces. American aerial attack drones and French naval firepower have
coordinated with the Kenyan ground assault.
A week before Djibouti troops were dispatched to Somalia, US Defense
Secretary Leon Panetta visited Djibouti where he warned about "key terror
nodes in Yemen and Somalia".
Ethiopia is also a close Washington ally. The government in Addis Ababa was
given the green light by then President Bush to invade Somalia in 2006 in a
bid to oust the Islamic Courts Union that was in power then.
The latest intervention by Ethiopia is unlikely to have been sanctioned
without Washington's clearance.
Superficially, it would appear that Washington is orchestrating a
multi-prong offensive against the Somali militants. The US agenda has little
to do with fighting terrorism and is motivated by geopolitical concern to
assert control over the strategically important East African country. The
country has been wracked by conflict for the past two decades ever since the
US-backed Siad Barre dictatorship was overthrown in 1991.
With its coastline overlooking the key oil routes of the Gulf of Yemen and
Red Sea, the US has been vexed by Somalia's relentless instability -
instability that has been largely engendered by Washington's proxy
warmongering in the region. The US-backed government in Mogadishu, which is
accused of corruption and misrule, has proven incapable of decisively
controlling the country. Even with generous aid from Washington and military
support from neighbouring US-backed states, including the presence of US
mercenaries, the government in Mogadishu can only but cling on to its
central seat of power.
The entry of forces from Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti could be seen as
Washington trying to ratchet up the military pressure on Al Shabab.
But of deeper concern is that US proxy war-making in East Africa could be
stoking up nationalist rivalries that may backfire in a regional war between
the various players who so far appear to be on the same side, that is, in
doing Washington's dirty work against Al Shabab.
In recent years Ethiopia's regional leadership has been challenged by the
rise of Kenya. Both countries share borders with Somalia and, historically
preceding colonial demarcations, both lay claim to adjacent Somali
territories. When Kenyan forces invaded Somalia in October, there was a
marked diplomatic silence from Ethiopia. Ethiopia had suffered a humiliating
defeat when it carried out its US-backed military gambit in Somalia in 2006.
With the US latterly turning to Kenya as its favoured proxy there seemed to
be a certain chagrin felt in Addis Ababa.
While appearing to do Washington's bidding against Al Shabab, political
sources in Kenya have told Global Research that Nairobi's agenda is to annex
a large swathe of Somalia's southern Jubbaland territory, historically known
as Azania. There have also been reports of Kenyan politicians
surreptitiously striking oil deals with French company Total in this part of
Somalia. Another crucial natural resource for Kenya in that territory is the
acquisition of freshwater, which Kenya is in short supply of.
With Somalia's territorial integrity at risk from 20 years of internecine
violence and lawlessness - despite Washington's efforts to shore up the
federal government - it can be seen as only a matter of time before Ethiopia
would join in a scramble for neighbouring land. It is significant that the
latest invasion by Ethiopia has targeted the central part of Somalia, the
south already being assailed by Kenyan forces.
So far, Washington's orchestration of conflict in Somalia may appear as a
smart bid for neocolonial control. But the real danger is when the
deep-seated regional rivalries of Washington's proxies start to clash at
close quarters. And given the desperate need for natural resources in this
famine-prone region, the stakes of any resultant all-out conflict take on
even greater urgency and mordancy.
Finian Cunningham is Global Research's Middle East and East Africa
correspondent
<mailto:cunninghamfin_at_yahoo.com> cunninghamfin_at_yahoo.com
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Received on Mon Jan 02 2012 - 12:26:30 EST
