US to Cut Some Somali Military Aid Over Misuse, Corruption

Aid Will Continue to Units With US Advisers

With the US repeatedly increasing its ground military involvement in Somalia over the course of 2017, they’ve also increased military aid to the Somali government. That aid hasn’t exactly been well-used, however.

Citing misuse of funds and growing corruption, the US State Department has revealed that they will cut military aid to certain Somali military units. Exactly what the extents will be of this cut are not clear.

Instead of saying what will be cut, officials focused on what won’t be cut, saying that none of the Somali units that are working directly with US advisers will see any cuts, nor will any military units presently involved in fighting extremist groups.

That could well cover the bulk of the Somali military, and suggest that the cuts are very token ones, designed to provide the appearance that something is being done about squandering of US aid.

Somalia is, of course, right near the top of the global corruption lists annually, but so are many other recipients of substantial US military aid, and the US has often struggled mightily to do anything about such corruption.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.