This archive report was first published on 27 September 2019.
On September 27, 2019, Somali President Mohamed Farmajo addressed the UN Assembly, revealing that talks with Kenya over a maritime dispute had reached a dead end.
According to Farmajo, the matter will now be taken up by the International Court of Justice, a move that comes after 20 petitioners in Kenya sought to block the country's participation in the case.
The petitioners, who moved to court on June 28, 2019, argued that Kenya's involvement in the case could lead to an unconstitutional alteration of its boundaries.
As the dispute continues, the territory in question remains a contentious issue, with a 100,000 square kilometer triangular patch at stake. This area, which has been projected eastward from the Kenya-Somalia border, is believed to hold significant oil and gas reserves.
Kenya's involvement in the case dates back to 2014, when Somalia first filed a lawsuit at the ICJ, seeking to have the boundary defined in accordance with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other international sea laws.
