Ethiopia and Somalia have agreed to end their bitter dispute over Addis Ababa's plans to build a port in the breakaway republic of Somaliland following talks in Turkey. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan welcomed the "historic agreement",

The new agreement comes even as sources close to US President-elect Donald Trump say his administration is likely to recognize Somaliland’s independence.

The leaders of Ethiopia and Somalia have agreed to hold “technical talks” to resolve a dispute sparked by Ethiopia’s deal with Somalia's breakaway region of Somaliland.

Somalia and Ethiopia said they would work together to resolve a dispute over Addis Ababa's plan to build a port in the breakaway region of Somaliland, which had drawn in regional powers and threatened to further destabilise the Horn of Africa.

Erdogan, who has known both leaders for years, has invested heavily in Somalia since 2011. Turkey has established a military base in the country, trained thousands of Somali soldiers, managed Mogadishu’s airport and port, and provided extensive humanitarian and military aid.

Ethiopia and Somalia agreed to lower tensions over a deal that would allow Addis Ababa to build a military base on the coast of the breakaway region of Somaliland in exchange for a stake in its national airline.

Ethiopia had earlier signalled a willingness to recognise Somaliland’s independence in exchange for a strategic strip of land near the Red Sea and Indian Ocean intersection

Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan says a joint declaration between Ethiopia and Somalia ‘focuses on the future, not the past’, describing it as the first step towards a new beginning based on peace and cooperation between the neighbours.

The dispute between began January 1 when Somaliland’s president, Muse Bihi Abdi, and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed signed a "historic" memorandum of understanding to lease 20 kilometers of seafront to Ethiopia for 50 years,

Somalia and Ethiopia have reached a deal to end a nearly year-old bitter dispute following hours of Turkish-brokered talks in Ankara, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Wednesday.Hailing it as a "historic agreement",