Dear Mr Doughty,
Your support for Somaliland in the House of Commons deserves appreciation. Through your visit to the country, your service as a vice-chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Somaliland and your parliamentary interventions, you have given its people a voice in British politics. I write to urge you to uphold that record in government by supporting British recognition of Somaliland.
As Minister of State with responsibility for the Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan and Pakistan, you serve a government whose recognition policy raises a straightforward question. If Israel's approval was unnecessary for recognising Palestine, why should Somalia's approval be necessary for recognising Somaliland?
You know the history behind that question. Somaliland became independent from Britain on 26 June 1960, five days before Somalia became independent. You know about the Isaaq genocide and the destruction of Hargeisa, about Somalilanders who fought alongside Britain in the First and Second World Wars, and about the democratic achievements and peaceful transfers of power that Somalilanders built themselves. These are the experiences of a people whose political future deserves an answer beyond indefinite waiting.
On 21 September 2025, Britain formally recognised Palestine without Israel's consent. Your government's stated principle was clear:
"No one side will have a veto on recognition through their actions or inactions."
Yet Britain's position on Somaliland makes a change in status dependent on agreement between Mogadishu and Hargeisa. That condition gives Somalia the power to withhold the very outcome Somaliland seeks. Encouraging dialogue is one thing; making recognition depend on the other party's agreement turns dialogue into a veto.
Conservative MP Gavin Williamson deserves our thanks for securing the 2022 debate and challenging his own government's refusal to recognise Somaliland. He explicitly opposed a Somali veto, giving Somaliland's case a strong voice across party lines.
You identified the practical weakness yourself in Parliament on 18 January 2022. Challenging the Conservative government, you said:
"There is currently huge political instability in the Federal Republic of Somalia, including huge chaos and infighting among the Government, along with many other problems.
With whom should the Somaliland Government be having discussions?"
You raised that question four years ago. The minister offered an answer about further conversations, but the obstacle you identified remains embedded in British policy. Your intervention deserves a substantive policy response from the government in which you now serve.
Somaliland also makes its case on the established Montevideo criteria for statehood:
- A permanent population.
- A defined territory.
- An effective government.
- The capacity to enter into relations with other states.
Somaliland demonstrates all four. Britain's recognition of Palestine despite the severe constraints on Palestinian government makes Somaliland's functioning institutions harder to dismiss. The criteria do not compel recognition, but every day that Britain recognises Palestine while withholding recognition from Somaliland exposes a lack of integrity and consistency in British foreign policy. Its restored sovereignty also rests on an independence Britain itself granted without Somalia's permission.
Of course, we are aware that Britain's relations with Israel are strained. Some may find the prospect of Britain becoming the second country, after Israel, to recognise Somaliland's restored independence uncomfortable. But this is precisely what separates principled foreign policy from rhetorical and emotional activism. If Britain's disagreements with Israel rest on facts and justice, recognising Somaliland would demonstrate that Britain can apply those standards independently of domestic political pressure. Somaliland's case should be judged on its merits, whoever recognised it first.
Recognition could also create an opening for Britain to host Somaliland and Somalia in talks towards a final settlement between the two countries. With their consent, Britain could help negotiate their future relationship after recognition, rather than making recognition the prize Somalia can withhold. That is the strategic lens through which we should be planning now.
I ask you to urge the Foreign Secretary to remove Mogadishu's consent as a condition and recognise Somaliland. Britain has already acted on the principle that recognition is its own decision. Your support could help turn that principle into a consistent British policy.
Again: No country should have a veto over another country's recognition.
Source: Watch the full UK Parliament debate on Somaliland recognition.