Somalia has experienced protracted political instability and armed conflict since the late 1980s. In the past decade, significant efforts have been made to (re)build the Somali central administration and consolidate a federal system of government. This chapter focuses on Somalia's politics and foreign relations during the presidencies of Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed “Farmaajo” and Hassan Sheikh Mohamud. Reflecting on Farmaajo (2017–2022) and earlier Hassan Sheikh (2012–2017) tenures, it discusses Hassan Sheikh's current term in office. After briefly contextualizing Somalia's contemporary political dynamics, including relevant aspects of Hassan Sheikh's first presidency, this chapter engages Farmaajo's tenure and underlines the attempts of regional states and extra-regional powers to influence Somalia's internal political dynamics. It then debates the record of the current Hassan Sheikh administration by teasing the prospects of Somalia's political future. The chapter shows how the complex dynamics of internal politics in Somalia limit different approaches to domestic policy, and that regional and extra-regional alignments and partnerships tend to shift with distinct Somali federal administrations.

This work was funded through national funds by FCT – Fundação para a Ciência e Tecnologia, I.P., under the scope of the project PEST‑BASE UIDB/03122/2020, based at the Centre for International Studies (CEI), Iscte – University Institute of Lisbon, Portuga