Postby Gladiator= » Thu Aug 02, 2007 8:01 pm
"Puntland nonetheless retains close relations with the T.F.G. and is represented at the ongoing National Reconciliation Conference in Somalia's official capital Mogadishu. Most importantly, it has dispatched thousands of troops to the south to protect the T.F.G., causing opposition in parliament and opening up security gaps. On August 1, the ninth anniversary of Puntland's autonomy, Muse announced that he had reached an agreement with the T.F.G. that Puntland's security forces would be integrated into the T.F.G.'s military, and that the T.F.G. would pay for equipping them.
The result of major deployments in the south has been an apparent loss of Garowe's grip over the territories that it annexed in 2002. On July 28, local media reported that an independent autonomous authority had been set up in the Sanaag region that would eventually place itself under the T.F.G.'s authority. On July 29, a delegation from Somaliland visited the major town of Lascanood in the Sool region to discuss development initiatives with ex-Puntland officials. The delegation vowed that Somaliland would "regularly conduct governmental affairs" in Sool now that the region has been abandoned by Puntland forces, which have either been redeployed or have deserted due to nonpayment of wages."