US strengthens military presence in breakaway Puntland amid battle for Red Sea

US strengthens military presence in breakaway Puntland amid battle for Red Sea Submitted by Victoria Amani Mwaniki Kishoiyian on Wed, 08/12/2026 - 17:09 The US has signed an agreement to expand a military base in Bosaso, a port city on the Gulf of Aden This handout satellite image from 2025 Planet Labs PBC shows the UAE-managed base in Bosaso, Somalia, on 3 September 2025 (Handout/2025 Planet Labs PBC/AFP) Off In early August, the commander of US Special Operations Command Africa, Major General Claude Tudor, signed a deal with the president of Somalia’s northeastern, semi-autonomous Puntland State, Saeed Abdullahi Deni. The two agreed to expand the American military base in Bosaso, a port city on the Gulf of Aden. According to a brief statement circulated by the Puntland Government of Somalia, the expansion is essential to “improve operations against terrorism and to help protect maritime security”.