ABSTRACT
The meeting started well, with Mohamed Ali Samantar assuring Dan Quayle that Somalia would be freeing “all political prisoners” and taking various other steps in efforts to improve human rights. Somalia, the legacy of both colonialism and the Cold War would result in bloody civil war and provide the context that would enable terrorism to flourish. The evacuation of the American Embassy in Mogadishu signalled the end of an era for the United States in Somalia in more ways than one, although not everyone recognised it as such at the time. The Somali National Movement victories over government troops served to encourage other opposition groups to President Siad Barre. The legacy of colonialism and the Cold War on Ethiopia’s neighbour, Somalia, had a somewhat different ending however. The temporary presence of US forces did not indicate or constitute any intention on the part of the US government to intervene militarily in the internal Somalian conflict.
