Somalia welcomes Kenya's reopening of airspace

Xinhua
11 Jun 2021, 04:18 GMT+10

MOGADISHU, June 10 (Xinhua) -- The Somali government on Thursday welcomed the reopening of the airspace by Kenya following a month-long closure due to diplomatic spat between the two neighboring countries.

Government spokesman Mohamed Ibrahim Moalimuu said the move by Nairobi could result in full normalization of bilateral ties between Nairobi and Mogadishu.

"This move could pave the way for normalization of the bilateral relations between the two neighboring countries," Moalimuu said in a brief statement.

The government spokesman's statement came after Kenyan Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Thursday that the decision to reopen airspace to Somalia was made in a goodwill gesture to boost the bilateral ties and was necessitated by mutual interests of the two countries.

Somalia in December 2020 severed its diplomatic ties with neighboring Kenya, accusing Nairobi of frequently violating Mogadishu's sovereignty. Mogadishu restored diplomatic relations with Nairobi on May 5 with mediation by Qatar.

Kenya's aviation authorities suspended all flights to and from Somalia on May 11 after Somalia refused to lift a ban imposed in 2020 on Kenya's cargo flights for khat (miraa).

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