Israel has become the first country to formally recognise Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland as an independent nation.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said Israel intended to immediately expand cooperation in agriculture, health, and technology. Somaliland's president, Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi, called the development "a historic moment".
Recognition by Israel could encourage other nations to follow suit, increasing the region's diplomatic credentials and access to international markets.
But the decision has been condemned by the foreign ministers of Somalia, Egypt, Turkey and Djibouti, who in a statement affirmed their "total rejection" of Israel's announcement.
Abdullahi said in a statement that Somaliland would join the Abraham Accords, in what he called a step toward regional and global peace.
