The Uganda Army reported this Monday the start of a phased withdrawal of all its troops deployed in Somalia against the jihadist organization Al Shabaab. This pullback, announced in August by the Ugandan Chief of the General Staff and agreed with the Somali authorities, is scheduled to conclude in 2027.
At present, Uganda maintains some 4,500 soldiers in Somalia under the umbrella of the African Union mission (AUSSOM), in addition to about 2,000 personnel sent through bilateral agreements. The departure has begun precisely with these latter ones: a first group of 109 soldiers left Mogadishu last Friday.
The withdrawal of the forces deployed under bilateral agreements will be completed in the coming days and, subsequently, the pullback of the contingent integrated into AUSSOM will begin. This second phase will be longer and will extend until the end of 2027, according to statements by the spokesperson for the Ugandan Ministry of Defense, Colonel Chris Magezi.
The withdrawal will mean "the end of Uganda's peace support and stabilization operations that have been in Somalia for 20 years, which will allow the Somali Armed Forces to assume full responsibility for security in the country," the statement emphasizes.
Uganda currently holds command of AUSSOM Sector One, which covers the Banadir region, including parts of Mogadishu and areas of neighboring Lower Shabelle.
At the same time, the future of the AUSSOM peace mission is going through a phase of strong operational pressure following the decision by the United States to end its financial and logistical support to the United Nations Support Office in Somalia (UNSOS), the essential mechanism that supplies fuel, food, medical evacuations and transport of material to the forces of the African Union.