Rising War of Words Involving Ethiopian Government and Eritrea Raises Concerns of Conflict

Increasing worries have emerged regarding the possibility of armed conflict between Horn of Africa neighbors, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as aggressive language has intensified in recent weeks.

What Has Ethiopian Officials Declared?

Landlocked Ethiopia's requests for entry to the Red Sea through Eritrea has triggered a intense war of words.

PM Abiy Ahmed previously announced in the previous year that his country's access to the sea was an vital issue, remarks that Eritrea dismissed.

Diplomatic connections between the two countries have often been tense. After a decades-long struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a long Red Sea coastline, legally broke away from Ethiopian rule in 1993, making it without sea access.

In 1998, a territorial conflict erupted in which over a hundred thousand people were killed.

Latest Comments from Ethiopia's Leadership

Abiy and military leader the army commander have publicly asserted control of Eritrea's coastal city of Assab – some 60 km from the border - and hinted at the intention to seize it militarily.

On 1 September, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia's "blunder" of losing entry to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrea's separation would be "corrected in the future".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, retired Gen Bacha Debele, said that Assab was "Ethiopia's wealth" and would be restored "through military action".

Eritrean Response to the Threats

Despite persistent threats from Ethiopia, Asmara's position has been confined to concise remarks on social media from Communications Head Yemane Gebremeskel.

He has rejected Ethiopia's push for access to the Red Sea describing it as "dangerous" and a "toxic agenda" of "territorial claims" – a strategy of reclaiming former lands.

The information ministry warned on recently that efforts to justify "flagrant aggression" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its neighbors and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Military Preparations on the Ground

There have been little evidence of major military movements in the frontier regions between the neighboring states.

However, in the country, government media has broadcast completion events of thousands of cadets at various military training camps.

The head of personnel division of the defense force, General Hachalu, stated recently in an interview that the army was in a "secure situation" as "many thousands of youths" were joining it, which he said was "a signal to our enemies".

Past Background of the Tension

For more than half a century from the late 19th century, Eritrea was ruled by Italian rulers.

Following Italy's defeat, it was then managed by the British military before evolving into a integrated region of the Ethiopian empire.

However in the early 1960s the ruler terminated this system and the region became totally absorbed into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year internal conflict occurred, concluding with Ethiopia's defeat in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then confirmed by the population in a referendum in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were good relations between the governments in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they clashed over the specific demarcation of their common border, resulting in hostilities in 1998.

Though this ended in a ceasefire agreement in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the both countries remained at odds.

This ended in 2018, when the Prime Minister made approaches to Eritrea's leader the president. The both leaders endorsed a statement that the war was over – a decision that won Abiy the international recognition.

The both administrations were then partners in the country's previous internal conflict in the northern region.

But ties have later worsened again.