Turkey deploys troops to Mogadishu in exchange for 30% share in oil and gas revenues

Turkey has deployed 500 counter-terrorism troops and military equipment to the Somali capital, Mogadishu, fulfilling part of its commitments under a defense agreement signed last year. In return, Ankara will receive 30% of the revenues from Somalia’s oil and gas extraction.

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Today   |   12:57   |   Source: PAP / Gazeta Morska   |   Prepared by: Tadeusz Brzozowski   |   Print

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The deployment, which is expected to eventually reach 2,500 Turkish personnel, was approved by the Turkish Parliament last year. The mission is slated to last two years and marks a deepening of Turkish involvement in the strategically significant Horn of Africa.

Turkish forces have maintained a presence in Somalia since 2017, where they train Somali special forces and operate the TurkSOM military base—the largest Turkish military facility on the African continent. In addition, Turkey runs a military academy in Mogadishu, which has graduated over 10,000 soldiers since its establishment in 2007.

Shortly after signing the defense agreement in 2023, the Turkish warship TCG Kinaliada docked at the Port of Mogadishu. Ankara has also committed to deploying frigates to Somali waters. In March, Turkey delivered at least two Bayraktar Akıncı combat drones to the Somali military, according to social media posts by then-Defense Minister Abdulkadir Mohamed Nur.

In exchange for its security support, Turkey secured rights to 30% of revenues from Somalia’s oil and gas resources, as outlined in the agreement submitted to the Turkish parliament for ratification earlier this week. The deal also grants Turkey unrestricted rights to export its share of hydrocarbons at prevailing global market prices.

Somalia’s natural resource potential is substantial. The country’s land and coastal waters are estimated to hold confirmed reserves of 6 billion cubic meters of natural gas and potentially up to 30 billion barrels of crude oil.

The agreement has raised concern in Washington, which considers the region within its sphere of influence. U.S. pressure is reported to have contributed to the recent dismissal of pro-Turkish Defense Minister Nur—an Ankara-trained official fluent in Turkish—who has been reassigned to the role of Minister of Ports and Maritime Transport by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.

Despite continued U.S. airstrikes targeting al-Qaeda-affiliated Al-Shabaab and Islamic State militants, Somalia has struggled to gain control over key territories. Just last week, insurgents captured a strategic military base in the Middle Shabelle region, approximately 200 km from the capital.

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