The foreign ministry on Tuesday joined the EU in calling for respect for Somalia’s territorial integrity and sovereignty, reiterating its commitment for peace building measures in the region.

“[The Republic of Cyprus] aligns itself with the EU’s call for respect for the unity, sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Federal Republic of Somalia and underlines its position that Somaliland remains an integral part of the Federal Republic of Somalia,” the ministry said.

This statement follows Israel’s recognition of Somaliland as an independent sovereign state on 26 December, making it the first country and UN member state to do so.

“Cyprus repeats its commitment to [the African Union], the EU, and wider international efforts in support of strengthening state- and peacebuilding in Somalia, including as provided for in relevant UN Security Council resolutions,” the ministry continued.

The EU’s diplomatic service had issued a relevant statement on December 27, emphasising the importance of respecting Somalia’s territorial integrity for peace and stability in the entire Horn of Africa region, known as the Somali Peninsula in East Africa.

“The EU encourages meaningful dialogue between Somaliland and the Federal Government of Somalia to resolve long standing differences,” the statement read.

Meanwhile federal government of Somalia described Israel’s recognition of Somaliland as a “a deliberate attack” on its sovereignty.

“The Somaliland Region is an integral, inseparable, and inalienable part of the sovereign territory of the Federal Republic of Somalia,” the Somali foreign ministry Wasaaradda Arrimaha Dibadda wrote in a relevant statement.

It stressed that Somalia was a “single, indivisible sovereign state”, and that no external entity possesses the prerogative to modify its unity or territorial configuration.

The UN assistant secretary-general for peacebuilding for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific, Khaled Khiari, described Israel’s recognition of Somaliland as a “null and void” arrangement, saying it constitutes a direct violation of the UN Charter, the fundamental principles of the African Union and international law.

A civil war has been ongoing in Somalia since 1991, with Doctors Without Borders estimating that it has killed or displaced an estimated two million people.