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Hassan Sheikh Mohamud
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Brussels, Jan 30, 2013 (Sapa) - Somalia took a fresh step in its return to the international fold on Wednesday with a high-profile EU visit by its leader that comes days after finally winning US recognition.
Months after his election, new Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud was to meet the European Union's top officials, marking what a senior diplomat said was the African nation's "move from hopelessness to hope".
"This visit symbolises a highly significant shift in the way the world sees Somalia and Somalis see the world," said the diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity.
"We want to encourage Somalia, say we are with them, that we take them seriously," the source added.
At the 27-nation bloc's headquarters in Brussels, Mohamud is to meet successively EU president Herman Van Rompuy, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton and the head of the European Commission Jose Manuel Barroso.
Mohamud, a university lecturer, was elected in September after eight years of transitional rule by a corruption-riddled government, bringing hope of an effective central government after more than two decades of chaos and war.Continued
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