By Goth Mohamed Goth
Mogadishu — The Somali Future Council has called for a comprehensive political agreement to establish an inclusive Transitional Council tasked with overseeing the country’s constitutional and electoral transition until new national institutions are peacefully established.
In an open letter dated July 27, 2026, the council emphasized that Somalia’s immediate priority must be a political settlement to restore legitimacy, rebuild national consensus, and safeguard the neutrality of state institutions, including the Somali National Army. The letter was addressed to the heads of state, defense ministers, and chiefs of defense forces of the African Union Support and Stabilization Mission in Somalia (AUSSOM) troop- and police-contributing countries, which include Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti, Burundi, and Egypt.
The Somali Future Council—an opposition group comprising a former president, former prime ministers, the current presidents of Jubaland and Puntland, as well as former ministers and other political leaders—thanked the African Union forces for nearly two decades of service, acknowledging the courage and sacrifice of thousands of African soldiers in support of Somalia’s peace and security.
However, the council warned that Somalia has entered a dangerous political phase, noting that President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s constitutional term expired on May 15, 2026, and Parliament’s term lapsed on April 14, 2026, with no agreed political framework in place to manage the transition. “Somalia is now in the most dangerous phase of its politics, without a legitimate, agreed framework for who governs, and how,” the letter stated.
The council accused the federal government of mismanaging the transition and argued that political fragmentation has weakened national cohesion and distracted from the fight against al-Shabab and Daesh. It further contended that the Somali National Army, built with support from African partners, has been diverted from its constitutional mission of protecting the Somali people. “A fragmented state cannot successfully wage a unified campaign against transnational terrorism,” the letter read.
Concern was also raised over deteriorating relations between the federal government and the federal member states of Puntland and Jubaland, whose forces remain engaged on front lines against insurgents. The council accused the federal government of marginalizing these states, denying them support, and directly targeting their forces. “Somalia cannot defeat two insurgencies while its government fights its own frontline states,” the council warned.
The letter comes as African troop-contributing countries are set to discuss the future of AUSSOM amid uncertainty over funding and logistical support. The council argued that the funding crisis surrounding UNSOS and AUSSOM, along with growing hesitation among international donors, reflects the absence of a legitimate government that partners can trust and engage with. “No mission can substitute for a state, and no measure of foreign sacrifice can secure a country whose own leadership has forfeited its legitimacy,” the council asserted.
The Somali Future Council reiterated its commitment to a peaceful, negotiated, Somali-owned settlement through dialogue and compromise. It proposed the formation of an inclusive Transitional Council to provide collective oversight of the constitutional and electoral process, which would help restore political legitimacy, rebuild national confidence, protect the neutrality of state institutions, and ensure a credible transition.
The council urged leaders of the African troop- and police-contributing countries to use the Kampala Summit to support a political settlement that restores legitimacy and establishes conditions for a peaceful constitutional transition. “Somalia urgently needs an inclusive political settlement, and this should be the condition and foundation of any continued engagement,” it said.
The council stressed that AUSSOM’s success should not be measured solely by territory liberated from militant groups, but by the emergence of a legitimate Somali state capable of preserving peace and security through its own institutions.
The letter was copied to the African Union Commission, the African Union Peace and Security Council, African members of the UN Security Council, IGAD, the United States, the United Kingdom, the European Union, Türkiye, and the United Nations Transition Mission in Somalia.
