Caasimada Online news website said on Saturday that Somalia’s President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed are scheduled to meet on the sidelines during the Italian Summit with African Countries.

Next week is the scheduled date of the summit; eight prime ministers and fifteen presidents have accepted the offer to participate, along with additional African delegates. Among the African leaders who accepted the invitation to the meeting in Italy are Hassan Sheikh of Somalia and Abiy Ahmed of Ethiopia.

The leader of Somalia, whose government has accused Ethiopia of plotting to takeover portions of Somalia, will meet for the first time with Ethiopia since its intention to lease navy base along the Red Sea with Somaliland infuriated them.

According to the news outlet, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will hold the meeting on Sunday night in an effort to defuse the tensions, which experts warn might have serious consequences.

As recently as yesterday, the ruling Prosperity Party (PP), led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, announced that the party has resolved to bring the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that Ethiopia signed with Somaliland “to a practical agreement” while simultaneously paying attention to the principles of give and take to secure additional options to port access with other neighboring countries. This announcement came at the conclusion of four days of meetings by members of both the Executive and the Central Committee.

The Memorandum of Understanding with Somalinad, according to the ruling party, further validates “Ethiopia’s position for regional economic and cultural ties.”

Thus far, based on political maneuvers, it is evident that PM Abiy and his administration are dedicated to seeing this Memorandum of Understanding with Somaliland through, irrespective of regional and international diplomatic pressures.

However, the Somali government had previously stated that talks with Ethiopia would not be possible until Ethiopia canceled its deal with Somaliland, which has not yet occurred.

It’s probable that the president of Somalia would be reminded of historical information regarding the merged nations that formed the Somali Republic in 1960 by a former master, colonizer, and administrator.