Somali President Tells AU Peacekeepers to Leave

What the report says

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud has said Somalia is now ready to take full responsibility for its own security and wants African Union peacekeepers to leave the country after nearly two decades of involvement against Al-Shabaab. He made the remarks in Galmudug on Sunday, thanking the African troops for their role while saying Somalia had reached a point where it could manage security itself.

The call comes as the African Union’s mission in Somalia is already in a transition phase. AMISOM, launched in 2007, was later replaced by ATMIS and then by AUSSOM, as the AU has gradually shifted responsibility to Somali forces. According to the source material, Somalia has also taken control of several former AU bases, but the handover has faced funding and logistics problems, along with disagreements over troop contributions.

The report also notes that Somalia’s security system increasingly depends on bilateral support from partners such as Turkey and the United States. Turkey has built a major military partnership with Mogadishu, including training Somali soldiers, while the U.S. continues to provide intelligence, training and air support. Egypt has joined the AU mission, and Uganda and Ethiopia still maintain forces in Somalia in other arrangements. This makes the transition less a simple exit of foreign troops and more a shift in how outside military support is organized.