The virtual panel titled ‘Competition or Cooperation: The Horn of African and Broader Red Sea Basin at a Crossroads’, was moderated by Ambassador Frank G. Wisner, along with the speakers, Ambassador Alexander Rondos, Abdul Mohammed, Abdulaziz Sager, and Kate Almquist Knopf. The virtual panel discussion focused attention on heightened tensions in the Horn of Africa and wider Red Sea basin, strategic area that has become a hub for regional and global power competition and investment.
The final outcome of the panel discussion focused on four key conclusions:
-Each Red Sea basin country, given its own circumstances, is required to define its way forward in order to achieve the right kind of stable outcome. The support of external players is important, without interfering in political transitions
-Second, the need to intensify Red Sea cooperation, especially with the Gulf states as this region is mostly affected by the situation in the Horn
-Third, importance of conflict management among rivalries in the region; competition involving Turkey, Qatar, and with great powers such as the U.S. and China
-Finally, reinforcing the fact that the Horn of Africa region and wider Red Sea basin are in need of help; whether through debt relief, development assistance, and private investments. These are opportunities leading towards a path of greater understanding of the of the many issues that the region faces
Recorded Virtual Panel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B74wfTmyLHs&feature=youtu.be
