GAROWE (SD)– The Puntland administration has announced that Villa Somalia is dedicating excessive effort during its remaining term in office to the destruction and destabilization of Puntland’s territories in general.

Puntland Vice President Ilyas Osman Lugatoor, speaking at a meeting in Garowe, urged Puntland’s leadership and people to show greater vigilance.

“Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who has a hundred and ten nights left in his term, is working on destruction. Therefore, we need to defend ourselves, knowing that last year we were preoccupied with the war against ISIS. This year we will focus strongly on defense,” stated Puntland Vice President Ilyas Osman Lugatoor.

The Vice President’s remarks come as the cities of Garowe and Bossaso recently hosted armed politicians affiliated with the Federal Government of Somalia, led by President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud’s supporters.

Funds from the federal government arrived in Puntland yesterday and were received by troops stationed in several Puntland towns. These troops were formerly part of Puntland’s forces but have now been integrated into the federal military.

Puntland recently disclosed the number of troops whose salaries are paid by the federal government and are stationed in its territories, stating there are 1,376 soldiers intended to disrupt Puntland’s security and existence, according to the Presidential Security Advisor, Abdi Hirsi Ali Qarjab.

The language used by Puntland’s Vice President is unprecedented in its directness and hostility. Accusing the federal government of actively working on Puntland’s “destruction” is a declaration that the federal compact is dead. This isn’t a policy disagreement; it’s an accusation of existential warfare. It signals that Puntland now views Mogadishu not as a partner or even a rival, but as an enemy state.

Puntland’s disclosure that 1,376 federal-paid troops are stationed in its territory with the intent to “disrupt security and existence” is explosive. It reframes what Mogadishu calls “integration” or “federal presence” as an occupying fifth column. This justifies Puntland’s potential moves to disarm, expel, or surround these units, which could lead to direct clashes between Puntland forces and what are technically federal troops.

The mention of federal funds arriving and being taken by these integrated troops highlights the financial weaponization of the conflict. Mogadishu uses salaries to buy loyalty of local forces, directly undermining Puntland’s command and control. Puntland’s public exposure of this is a warning to those troops and a plea to its populace to see them as mercenaries, not liberators.

The VP’s statement that last year was spent on ISIS, but this year the focus is on defense against Mogadishu, is a monumental shift. It officially reprioritizes the enemy. The primary threat is no longer the terrorist group Daesh but the Federal Government in Mogadishu. This reallocation of military and political focus will have immediate consequences for the counter-terrorism effort in the region, potentially creating security vacuums.

Puntland is not just another disgruntled member state; it is the historical cornerstone of the federal project, the first autonomous region. Its rupture with Mogadishu signifies the collapse of the federal model from its very foundation. If Puntland moves toward de facto independence or a formal alliance with Jubaland, the Somali Federal Republic ceases to exist in any meaningful form. The country would effectively split into three entities: Jubaland, Puntland, and a rump south-central Somalia.