The visit would have been the first by a Chinese foreign minister to Somalia since the state collapsed in 1991. It had been planned at a high-profile moment just after Israel recognised the breakaway region of Somaliland.

"The visit of the Chinese government delegation to Somalia today was delayed due to technical issues," an official at the Somali presidential palace told AFP on condition of anonymity.

"The Chinese government will issue a formal statement about this matter," the official added.

Wang instead flew directly to Tanzania, the next stop on his itinerary, where he was due to meet President Samia Suluhu Hassan in Dar es Salaam.

China has invested heavily in Tanzania in recent years, particularly in the country's low-tax special economic zones, where 343 Chinese-funded projects worth $3.1 billion were registered in 2025 alone, the foreign ministry said in a statement.

The visit also came as Tanzania's relations with the West have been strained by criticism of the bloody crackdown on election protesters last year.

"The visit aims to further strengthen and deepen the strategic relations and cooperation," Tanzania's foreign ministry said in a statement.

Wang was in Ethiopia on Thursday to meet Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and the head of the African Union, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.

A joint statement by Wang and the African Union criticised the Israeli recognition of Somaliland.

In a post on X, the breakaway state's Presidency Minister Khadar Hussein Abdi claimed that the Chinese foreign minister had swerved the Mogadishu stopover because of security concerns.

"Somalia cannot even guarantee the security of its own guests," Abdi said, alongside an image of what he presented as an official Chinese foreign ministry statement.

AFP was unable to verify the authenticity of the press release, which could not be found on the ministry's website late on Friday.

After Tanzania, Wang is due in Lesotho, where punishing US tariffs have strained its relations with Washington.

str-er/sbk/jj

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