The “two drowning men” metaphor by
@abdulslam2017 sounds sharp, but it collapses under basic scrutiny. If both actors were truly “drowning,” they would not provoke such consistent and coordinated pushback from regional powers. States do not expend diplomatic capital, lobbying, and pressure campaigns against entities they believe are irrelevant or doomed.
What this reaction actually reveals is anxiety—not confidence.
Saudi Arabia and its aligned bloc are not behaving like observers of a failed or meaningless initiative. They are behaving like actors trying to contain a development they cannot fully control. Somaliland’s case, in particular, is uncomfortable because it challenges a long-standing Arab League orthodoxy: automatic alignment with Somalia regardless of facts on the ground. For over three decades, Somaliland has restored its sovereignty which KSA was among those congratulated in 1960, maintained stability, institutional continuity, and internal sovereignty that far exceeds the “recognized” federal structure in failed state of Somalia. Ignoring that reality has become harder, not easier.
The contradiction is even sharper in the language used. On one hand, Somaliland is dismissed as “non-existent” and “without legitimacy.” On the other, there is urgency to block any form of engagement with it—whether diplomatic, economic, or symbolic. You do not mobilize against something that has “nothing but a name.” That is the core inconsistency.
As for Israel, framing its moves purely as desperation overlooks a more pragmatic pattern. Israel’s foreign policy—especially in the Red Sea and Horn of Africa—is driven by maritime security, trade routes, and strategic positioning, not ideological charity.
Engagement with Somaliland fits into a broader logic of access and influence along critical shipping lanes. You may disagree with it, but it is not evidence of “drowning”; it is evidence of calculated outreach into spaces where traditional Arab diplomacy has been largely absent or ineffective.
The reference to “Arab principles” also deserves a reality check. Those principles have not been applied consistently across the region. Territorial integrity is defended in some cases and ignored in others, depending on political convenience.
Somalia’s unity is invoked strongly, yet little comparable energy is invested in resolving its internal fragmentation or addressing governance failures. Supporting Mogadishu rhetorically is not the same as stabilizing Somalia in practice.
On Palestine, the claim that it is a “non-existent project” contradicts decades of sustained diplomatic, financial, and political backing from the same actors making that argument. If it were truly non-existent, it would not remain a central issue in Arab foreign policy or international forums. Again, the behavior does not match the rhetoric.
So the “harsh reality” is this:
The intensity of the reaction is proportional to perceived risk, not irrelevance. Somaliland’s incremental normalization—even at a symbolic level—introduces a precedent that unsettles established diplomatic alignments. That is why it is resisted so forcefully.
In short, this is not a case of two drowning men. It is a case of emerging actors testing space in a system where others have long assumed uncontested control—and reacting defensively when that assumption is challenged.
🚨When a drowning person seeks rescue from another drowning person..
Netanyahu’s lack of political direction following the imposition of peace in the region has led him to resort to the same old behavior: attempting to fuel division and support parallel entities by opening a so-called “representative office” for Somaliland in occupied Jerusalem.
The equation here is clear and exposed: an occupying state seeking legitimacy it has failed to achieve for seven decades, granting recognition it does not possess to an authority not recognized internationally. Both parties are chasing a mirage: one ties its fate to the occupier,
and the occupier seeks strategic depth through entities that possess nothing but a name
Saudi and Arab principles are firm and do not tolerate ambiguity; we stand fully with the Federal Republic of Somalia in Mogadishu, and we reject any infringement upon its sovereignty and unity, while awaiting a firm diplomatic stance that restores matters to their legal status. 🇵🇸🇸🇴