🔗 Share this article

Growing concerns have emerged regarding the possibility of warfare between Horn of Africa neighbors, Ethiopia and the Eritrean government, as aggressive rhetoric has ratcheted up in the last month.

What Did Ethiopia Declared?

Landlocked Ethiopia's requests for passage to the maritime outlet through Eritrea has sparked a intense war of words.

Ethiopian Prime Minister initially stated publicly in 2023 that his country's sea access was an vital issue, remarks that Eritrea ignored.

Relations between the both governments have often been tense. After a long-standing fight for sovereignty, the Eritrean state, which has a extensive sea border, formally separated from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, rendering it without sea access.

In 1998, a border war erupted in which numerous people lost their lives.

Latest Comments from Ethiopian Leadership

Abiy and army chief Field Marshal Birhanu Jula have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrea's maritime facility of Assab – some 60 km from the border - and hinted at the desire to seize it militarily.

Recently, the Prime Minister said the country's "error" of losing access to the sea as a due to Eritrean independence would be "rectified tomorrow".

The Ethiopian envoy to Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that the port was "belonging to Ethiopia" and would be restored "by force".

Eritrea's Reaction to the Claims

In the face of ongoing threats from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's reaction has been restricted to concise remarks on X from Information Minister Yemane G..

He has rejected Ethiopia's push for access to the Red Sea labeling it "risky" and a "negative policy" of "irredentism" – a strategy of retaking previous domains.

Government spokespeople warned on mid-September that attempts to legitimise "obvious provocation" would have significant repercussions for Ethiopia and its neighbors and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Movements on the Region

There have been no reports of major military movements in the frontier regions between the two countries.

Nevertheless, in the country, state television has displayed completion events of many recruits at various military training camps.

The head of personnel division of the defense force, General Hachalu, recently said in an interview that the defense forces was in a "reliable position" as "many thousands of recruits" were entering service, which he said was "a message to our enemies".

Historical Origins of the Conflict

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

Following the end of Italian rule, it was then controlled by the UK forces before evolving into a integrated region of the Ethiopian empire.

But in 1962 the ruler ended this arrangement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into the Ethiopian state.

A extended armed struggle ensued, ending with military reversal in the early 1990s. Sovereignty was then approved by voters in a plebiscite in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the leadership in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they fell out over the specific demarcation of their common border, causing war in 1998.

Though this finished in a peace deal in 2000, it was partially applied, and the both countries stayed at loggerheads.

This situation improved in 2018, when the Prime Minister made approaches to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The both leaders agreed to a declaration that the conflict was concluded – a decision that earned Abiy the prestigious award.

The both administrations were then partners in Ethiopia's previous armed struggle in the northern region.

However diplomatic connections have since broken down anew.