The Government of Kenya on Saturday sent back Somalia's Ambassador to Kenya, Mohamud Ahmed Nur, and recalled Kenyan Envoy Lucas Tumbo over an oil and gas dispute.
The government has accused Somalia of auctioning off oil and gas blocks in Kenya's territory.
"This outrageous and provocative auction deserves and will be met by a unanimous and resounding rejection by all Kenyans as well as people of goodwill who believe in the maintenance of international law and order," stated Foreign Affairs PS Amb Macharia Kamau in a press statement.
The auction that took place in London on February 7, 2019, has been termed as an unparalleled affront and illegal grab of Kenyan resources.
“The government of the Federal Republic of Somalia has once again demonstrated that it has yet to attain and embrace the political maturity and diplomatic stance of a normal, well adjusted, and properly functioning government,” the PS lamented.
Kenya also demanded that Somalia withdraws an incorrect map that it had issued at the time it auctioned the oil and gas blocks.
The area in dispute is a narrow triangle off the coast of Africa, in the Indian Ocean, that is about 100,000 square km
The matter is already lodged at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
Somalia has asked the ICJ to define the boundary as laid down by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and other international sea laws.
Representatives from both countries have met numerous times to discuss how the dispute can be settled but it appears not to have been resolved.
