More than 100 Somali special forces members who completed training in Turkey landed in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, late Saturday.
The commandos landed at Aden Adde International Airport and were welcomed by the Somali National Army’s infantry division commander, Mohamed Tahlil Bihi, and other senior officials.
Military officials told Anadolu Agency (AA) that the commandos received modern commando training from the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) in Turkey’s Isparta province.
They will join the country's famous and most effective military force called Gorgor (the Eagles), who were all trained by Turkey.
The commandos will be deployed on the front line to fight the al-Qaida-affiliated terrorist group al-Shabab, officials added.
Turkey has been training Somali soldiers for the past four years as part of its 2010 military training cooperation agreement.
The Harcamad and Gorgor elite units are fighting al-Shabab.
Turkey also last month delivered a donation of military vehicles, including trucks and ambulances, to the Somali National Army as part of Ankara’s support for the nation’s military.
Turkey's special relations with Africa will go down in history as an excellent example of cooperation, first lady Emine Erdoğan said recently.
"When we look at Africa today, we see that many countries are there with different motivations. However, Turkey has an active, multidimensional, enterprising and humanitarian foreign policy," she said.
The first lady noted that Turkey's Africa initiative started in 2005 and adopted a partnership policy in 2013. "This policy is the product of a holistic understanding that covers the activities of public institutions, the private sector, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and humanitarian aid organizations. Our main goal is to contribute to the peace and stability of the continent, and to support its economic and social development," she explained.
"Our bilateral relations are developing on the basis of equal partnership and mutual benefit. Therefore, Turkey's African motivation enables us to be a friendly and brotherly country with all African countries," she also said.
President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan last month once again reaffirmed that Turkey’s approach in its ever-growing relations with African countries is based on equal partnership and a win-win principle, emphasizing the strong will to further develop commercial ties. Turkey’s engagement with the African continent has been gaining pace over the years. Since taking office nearly two decades ago, first serving as prime minister, the president has been fostering ties with Africa, presenting Turkey as a fairer player than the continent’s former colonial powers. Ankara has been stressing the desire to advance relations with the continent on the basis of a mutually beneficial relationship and equal partnership while observing mutual respect. Both sides have been vowing to tap into their greater potential when it comes to further expanding and deepening relations.
