Somaliland warns against "declarations of sovereignty"NAIROBI, 21 Jul 2003 (IRIN) - The authorities in the self-declared republic of Somaliland have issued a warning against anyone trying to represent the region at the ongoing Somali peace talks in Kenya.

In a statement, received by IRIN on Monday, Somaliland warned Somali leaders and the international community to "abstain from any unfriendly declaration or acts against Somaliland".

"In the event that any person claims to be representing the government of Somaliland and/or its people in the ongoing Somalia Peace Conference, and in the event that such person or persons are accorded such status, the government of Somaliland hereby officially states that this will hinder any possible future dialogue between Somaliland and any future legitimate government of Somalia (former Italian Somalia) [brackets as received]", the statement said. MORE