Would Somalia be a battleground of Egyptian-Ethiopian proxy war?

The inflow of Egyptian arms to Somalia in a context of increasing tension with its Ethiopian neighbor risks triggering a proxy war in the horn of Africa opposing Cairo to Addis Ababa.

Reports mentioned a second shipment of Egyptian arms to Somalia this week, despite threats by Ethiopia that such move represents an act of aggression.

Egypt has also said it was ready to send soldiers in case Somalia asks.

Ethiopia has said that any Egyptian boots on the Somalian ground would be a casus-belli.

The conflict between Ethiopia and Somalia worsened when Addis Ababa signed a MOU with the breakaway Somaliland to use its coastal area for the purpose of a port in exchange for recognition as a state. The deal angered Somalia.

Ethiopia and Egypt are at loggerheads over the renaissance dam, opposed by Egypt as a threat to its water security.

Somalia has stressed the need to scrap the deal with Somaliland promising to give access to the sea to Ethiopia but ruled out any naval base.

Ethiopians also fear Egypt is intervening in the region to prevent Ethiopia from bolstering its footprint in the region by accessing the Red Sea.