Somaliland President Meets Eric Trump and Israeli President at Davos to Seek Recognition and Investment

The president of Somaliland used the global spotlight of the World Economic Forum in Davos this week to push for international recognition and attract foreign investment to the self-declared East African nation. President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi held a series of high-level meetings aimed at raising Somaliland’s diplomatic and economic profile, including a notable closed-door discussion with Eric Trump, son of U.S. President Donald Trump, and Israeli President Isaac Herzog.

According to aides and sources familiar with the talks, the meeting took place on Wednesday at a hotel conference room near the Davos venue, while Donald Trump was addressing world leaders and business executives at the forum. Eric Trump attended the meeting in his role as a senior executive of the Trump Organization, the family’s global business empire with interests spanning real estate, hospitality, and cryptocurrency.

During the discussion, President Abdullahi presented Somaliland as a stable and strategic investment destination in East Africa. A key focus of the pitch was the deep-water port of Berbera, located along one of the world’s busiest maritime trade routes in the Gulf of Aden. The port is widely seen as a critical logistics hub with strong potential for regional trade, energy transit, and global shipping, making it central to Somaliland’s economic development strategy.

“The meeting went very well,” Abdullahi told Reuters, confirming that both Eric Trump and President Herzog were present. While a spokeswoman for Eric Trump declined to comment, Herzog later shared on X that he was pleased to meet his Somaliland counterpart in Davos, though he did not reference Eric Trump directly.

Israel became the first United Nations member state to recognize Somaliland last month, a diplomatic breakthrough for the region that has sought international legitimacy for more than three decades. Somaliland has maintained relative peace and functional governance since 1991, when Somalia descended into civil war, yet it remains unrecognized by most of the international community.

The meeting also comes amid renewed scrutiny of the Trump family’s business activities abroad. During Donald Trump’s first presidency, the Trump Organization had pledged not to pursue new international deals. However, updated ethics guidelines released shortly before his second inauguration removed that restriction, reopening the door to overseas business opportunities.

The White House did not respond to requests for comment on the Davos meeting, but the encounter underscores Somaliland’s intensified efforts to combine diplomacy, geopolitics, and investment outreach in its quest for global recognition.