WASHINGTON is set to deploy troops to Somalia as its seeks to strengthen its foothold in Africa to counter the growing influence of China, it announced on Monday. 

US President Joe Biden authorised the request from the Department of Defence “to reposition US forces in east Africa in order to re-establish a small persistent US military presence in Somalia,” a senior official said. 

The stated aim of the deployment is to help the country in its fight against the al-Shabaab jihadist group which still holds vast swathes of territory.

“[Al-Shabaab] has become al-Qaida’s largest global affiliate, it has become the best financed of al-Qaida’s global affiliates, and the pace with which it engages in attacks, and often lethal attacks, is quite appalling,” the unnamed official said.

It is unclear how many soldiers will be stationed in Somalia and the Pentagon insisted they would not be directly fighting in combat operations, but working to train, advise and equip Somali forces

“This is a repositioning of forces already in theatre who have travelled in and out of Somalia on an episodic basis,” White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre.

The deployment partially reverses former US president Donald Trump’s December 2021 decision to withdraw 750 soldiers based in Somalia. 

Pentagon spokesman John Kirby said that Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin viewed the current form of operations as “inefficient and increasingly unsustainable.”

The announcement comes just a day after the election of Hassan Sheikh Mohamud who became president for a second time on Sunday. 

Colonel Ahmed Sheikh, the former commander of Somalia's elite Danab Special Forces unit said it was good news and a boost for Mr Mohamud. 

Washington fears the growth of Chinese influence in Africa and has issued a number of warnings over involvement in Beijing’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative.

In November 2021, Secretary of State Antony Blinken toured Kenya, Nigeria and Senegal last week promising more investment through the Build Back Better Initiative.

He warned African nations against racking up debts through the BRI and promised to treat Africa more fairly as part of US efforts to revitalise its relationship with the continent