Ethiopia Reportedly Asks AU to Accelerate Withdrawal of Its Troops from Somalia

Mogadishu (WDN) — In a potentially significant shift in Somalia’s security landscape, Ethiopia has reportedly asked the African Union to accelerate the withdrawal and redeployment of some of its troops serving under the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM), prompting the AU to reconsider its previously agreed force-redeployment timetable.

The reported request has caught observers by surprise because Ethiopia was not initially expected to significantly reduce its military footprint in Somalia at this stage of the AUSSOM transition.

Under the earlier planning framework, greater attention had been placed on reducing Ugandan forces and completing the withdrawal of the remaining Burundian contingent, while Ethiopian forces were expected to maintain a substantial presence in several strategically important areas.

That calculation now appears to be changing. According to information emerging from diplomatic and security circles, Addis Ababa’s request is linked to mounting security pressures inside Ethiopia, forcing the government to reassess how many troops it can continue to deploy abroad and where those forces are most urgently required.