Galkacyo (WDN) – Senior security officials from Puntland and Galmudug met in Gaalkacyo on Tuesday in a significant show of cooperation, reinforcing calls for restraint and dialogue at a time of growing tensions fueled by the deployment of additional Federal Government forces near Puntland.

The joint meeting, held at the Puntland Presidency in Mudug, brought together senior officials from both regional administrations to discuss ways of strengthening security coordination, preserving stability, and preventing any deterioration of the fragile peace that has prevailed along one of Somalia’s most sensitive regional boundaries.

The meeting was co-chaired by Puntland’s Deputy Minister of Security, Abdirahman Yusuf Dujaana, and Galmudug’s Minister of Security, Adan Warsame Ilmi. It was attended by ministers, regional administrators, district commissioners, and senior security officials from both sides.

According to officials, discussions focused on enhancing joint security cooperation, improving communication between the two administrations, and ensuring that Mudug remains insulated from the broader political disputes unfolding elsewhere in Somalia.

Following the talks, the delegations made a symbolic walk across both sides of Gaalkacyo—a city divided administratively between Puntland and Galmudug but whose residents have spent years rebuilding trust after repeated cycles of violence.

The gesture was widely interpreted as a public affirmation that both administrations remain committed to peaceful coexistence despite mounting political pressures.

Officials stressed that security cooperation and community unity remain the strongest foundations for long-term peace, emphasizing that continued dialogue between Puntland and Galmudug is essential to preventing misunderstandings from escalating into armed confrontation.

The renewed commitment to cooperation comes as concerns continue to grow over the deployment of additional Federal Government forces near Puntland, a move that Puntland officials have repeatedly criticized as unilateral and politically motivated.

Political observers warn that, should tensions erupt into open conflict, it would not be national political leaders who bear the immediate consequences. Instead, it would be the ordinary residents of Mudug—families, traders, students, and pastoral communities—whose homes, businesses, and livelihoods would once again become the battlefield.

Many local elders argue that the people of Gaalkacyo have already endured enough bloodshed over the past three decades and have invested enormous effort in restoring peace between Puntland and Galmudug. That hard-won stability, they say, should not become collateral damage in disputes driven by national politics.

Negotiation, Not Confrontation

Community leaders across Mudug continue to urge all political actors to prioritize negotiations over military posturing. They argue that dialogue remains the only sustainable path toward resolving Somalia’s widening political crisis and caution against allowing local communities to become victims of decisions taken hundreds of kilometers away in Mogadishu.

Analysts note that any military confrontation would almost certainly undermine years of confidence-building between Puntland and Galmudug, disrupt trade across central Somalia, displace civilians, and divert security resources away from the ongoing fight against Al-Shabaab.

For many residents, the message emerging from Saturday’s meeting was both practical and urgent: whatever political disagreements exist at the national level, they should be resolved through negotiation—not through armed confrontation.

As Somalia grapples with one of its most delicate political periods in recent years, the images of Puntland and Galmudug officials walking together through Gaalkacyo served as a reminder that cooperation remains possible—and that preserving peace may ultimately require leaders to place the welfare of ordinary Somalis above political rivalry.

WardheerNews