Somali Future Council Sets Conditions for Political Talks with the Federal Government

MOGADISHU (SD)— The Somali Future Council has set out four conditions for holding political talks with the Federal Government, asking the United States, the United Kingdom, Türkiye and the European Union to take a leading role in organizing and overseeing the negotiations.

In a letter sent to the four international partners, the Council outlined its demands as efforts to resolve Somalia’s ongoing political dispute remain stalled.

The first condition is that President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud should not host the talks. The Council says it does not recognize him as a legitimate president, based on its interpretation of a Supreme Court ruling related to the dispute over his leadership.

Secondly, the Council wants the United States, the UK, Türkiye and the EU to directly organize the talks, ensure the security of the meetings and help guarantee that any agreement reached is respected and implemented. The Council believes this would allow both sides to take part on equal terms.

As its third condition, the Council says the parties must first agree on who will organize and lead the talks before discussing other matters, such as the meeting location, security arrangements and agenda.

The fourth condition calls for political leaders and influential figures from South West State and the Hiiraan region to be included in the negotiations. The Council says these groups must commit to ending hostilities and respecting any agreement reached through the talks.

The Council argues that any political agreement that leaves out influential groups in these areas would fail to address the security and political problems affecting them.

The demands come as Somalia faces growing disagreements over the terms of office of federal institutions, the electoral process and controversy surrounding a Supreme Court decision dated November 5, 2026.

The talks were initially scheduled to take place in Mogadishu from November 14 to 18, with the United States, the United Kingdom, Türkiye and the European Union acting as mediators. However, disagreements between the government and opposition groups have prevented the meeting from taking place as planned.

The four conditions show how far apart the government and opposition remain. The Council wants international partners to oversee the talks because it believes this would make the process fairer, but its refusal to recognize President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud as a legitimate leader could make an agreement harder to reach.

Including political figures from South West and Hiiraan also shows that the dispute goes beyond the federal government and opposition. The main challenge for the international partners will be to find a compromise that both sides can accept.

Without one, political tensions are likely to continue, delaying decisions on elections and the future of Somalia’s federal institutions.