Puntland

Puntland

National motto: None
Official language	Somali
Capital	Garowe
President	Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmad
Area  - Total	< 300,000 km², in dispute
Population  - Total (2000)  - Density	2,500,000 ~5/km², uncertain
Independence  - Declared  - Recognition	1998 none
Currency	Somali Shilling
Time zone	UTC+3 ?
National anthem	none
Internet TLD	none
Calling Code	252 ?

Puntland is a region in northeastern Somalia, centered around Garowe (Nugaal region), which in 1998 declared itself to be the an independent republic. The current government apparently sees the move as an attempt to reconstitute Somalia as a federative republic.

History

Puntland was originally a part of a unified Somalia; however in 1969, when Somalia's government was toppled in a coup d'état, years of war and chaos followed, as well as an unsuccessful invasion of Ethiopia following the Soviet Union's change of support from Somalia to Ethiopia, caused by the communist takeover in Ethiopia. Left with no Soviet support, Somalia turned to the United States, which allowed Somalia's self-proclaimed president to stay in power during the Cold War until its end, in 1991, when the Soviet Union collapsed and Somalia's president was overthrown.

Following these events, Somalis remained without a centralized government, with constant wars ravaging the southern part of Somalia. These events led to the 1991 secession of Somaliland, which in 1960 had enjoyed a few days of independence. Chaos continued throughout the land, prompting a United Nations peacekeeping force to be sent to war-torn Somalia. That ended however in March 3, 1995, after American troops were shot down and massacred.

Somalia remained unstable and, in 1998, Puntland declared independence under the presidency of Abdullahi Yusuf, as a nation with clan confederation as one of its top priorities. Since 1998, Puntland has been in territorial disputes with Somaliland over the Sool and Sanaag regions.

Geography

Map of Somalia with Puntland roughly highlighted

Puntland probably occupies the following Regions of Somalia:

• Bari
• Galguduud
• Mudug
• Nugaal
• Shabeellaha Dhexe