Somalia: African Union Members Warn Somalia Peacekeeping Mission Cannot Continue Indefinitely

What the report says

AllAfrica, republishing a Shabelle Media Network report from Nairobi dated 22 July 2026, says some African Union member states have warned that the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia cannot remain in place without an endpoint. The report says Cameroon and Gabon, citing The East African, argued that peacekeeping deployments are meant to conclude and urged Somalia’s federal government to move faster in preparing national forces to take over the country’s security responsibilities.

The warning comes as questions grow over how AUSSOM will be financed in the coming years. According to the report, the United States has indicated opposition to continued United Nations support for the mission beyond 2026, creating uncertainty over whether the operation can be sustained in its current form. AU members are discussing options for a transition plan that would gradually shift more security duties to Somali authorities while accounting for funding pressures and the security situation.

AUSSOM began in 2025 as the successor to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia, known as ATMIS. Its role is to back Somali security forces and help stabilise areas recovered from Al-Shabaab militants, with the stated goal of eventually transferring full responsibility to Somali forces.

The issue matters because Somalia still depends heavily on international assistance in its campaign against Al-Shabaab, which has waged a long-running insurgency against the federal government and its security institutions. The debate over AUSSOM’s future links military planning, donor support and Somalia’s ability to build forces capable of holding territory after foreign troops withdraw.