Kenya rejects UN court jurisdiction ahead of Somalia border ruling

NAIROBI: Kenya stated on Friday it rejected the jurisdiction of the UN’s Worldwide Courtroom of Justice (ICJ), forward of a ruling subsequent week on its long-running maritime border dispute with Somalia.
The Horn of Africa neighbours have been feuding for years over a stretch of the Indian Ocean claimed by each nations that’s believed to carry deposits of oil and fuel.
“Along with withdrawing its participation from the present case, Kenya… additionally joined many different members of the United Nations in withdrawing its recognition of the court docket’s obligatory jurisdiction,” the overseas ministry stated.
Kenya introduced in March it will boycott ICJ hearings within the case after The Hague-based tribunal refused to permit additional delays. The ultimate ruling is because of be delivered on Tuesday.
“The supply of the judgement would be the fruits of a flawed judicial course of that Kenya has had reservations with, and withdrawn from,” the overseas ministry stated, accusing the court docket of “apparent and inherent bias” in resolving the dispute.
“As a sovereign nation, Kenya shall not be subjected to a global court docket or tribunal with out its categorical consent.”

Somalia, which lies northeast of Kenya, desires to increase its maritime frontier with Kenya alongside the road of the land border, in a south-easterly course.
Kenya desires the border to move out to sea in a straight line east — a delineation that may give it a much bigger share of the ocean. The disputed triangle of water stretches over an space of greater than 100,000 sq. kilometres (40,000 sq. miles).
Nairobi maintains it has had sovereignty over the contested zone since 1979.
The 2 international locations agreed in 2009 to settle their dispute by way of bilateral negotiations.
Two conferences had been held in 2014, however little progress was made. A 3rd spherical that very same yr fell by way of when the Kenyan delegation failed to indicate up with out informing their counterparts, later citing safety issues.
Somalia took the matter to court docket in 2014 after saying diplomatic makes an attempt to resolve the disagreement had led nowhere.
However Nairobi — which described itself as “a beacon of peace and stability” in a unstable area — maintained on Friday it was dedicated to resolving the dispute by way of “amicable negotiations.”
Kenya charged that ICJ had no jurisdiction over the case and its takeover of the arbitration amounted to utilizing pseudo-judicial processes to undermine territorial integrity.

Subsequent week’s ICJ verdict might additional bother the customarily rocky relations between the 2 international locations.
Somalia has lengthy bristled at what it calls Kenya’s meddling in areas over its border, whereas Nairobi has accused Mogadishu of utilizing it as a scapegoat for its personal political issues.
Kenya in 2019 recalled its ambassador to Mogadishu after accusing Somalia of promoting off oil and fuel blocks within the contested space.
It described the transfer as an “unlawful seize” of sources, and reminded Mogadishu of Kenya’s assist in the battle towards Al-Shabaab jihadists in Somalia.
Kenya is a serious contributor of troops to AMISOM, an African Union navy operation preventing the Al-Qaeda-linked fighters waging a violent insurgency throughout Somalia.
Somalia severed ties in December 2020 after Kenya hosted the management of Somaliland, a breakaway state not recognised by Mogadishu.
However the two international locations agreed to reset relations when Somali Prime Minister Mohamed Hussein Roble held talks with Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta in August 2021.