Intensifying War of Words Involving Ethiopia and Eritrean Government Raises Fears of Armed Clash

Mounting worries exist over the possibility of armed conflict between Horn of Africa neighbors, Ethiopia and the Eritrean government, as aggressive rhetoric has ratcheted up in the last month.

What Has Ethiopian Officials Said?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, calls for passage to the maritime outlet through Eritrean territory has triggered a intense rhetorical conflict.

The Ethiopian leader initially stated publicly in the previous year that his government's access to the sea was an existential matter, statements that Eritrean authorities dismissed.

Relations between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. After a decades-long fight for sovereignty, Eritrea, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) maritime frontage, formally separated from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, rendering it without sea access.

Subsequently, a territorial conflict broke out in which more than 100,000 people were killed.

Latest Comments from Ethiopia's Officials

Abiy and military leader General Birhanu Jula have publicly asserted sovereignty of Eritrean maritime facility of the port of Assab – about 60km from the frontier - and suggested the desire to take it by force.

In early September, Abiy said Ethiopia's "error" of losing access to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrean independence would be "addressed soon".

The Ethiopian envoy to Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be restored "using武力".

Eritrea's Answer to the Threats

In the face of ongoing warnings from Ethiopia, Eritrea's response has been limited to short statements on online platforms from Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel.

Officials have denied Ethiopia's demand for maritime entry calling it "hazardous" and a "harmful plan" of "expansionism" – a strategy of retaking former lands.

Government spokespeople alerted on recently that moves to legitimise "blatant hostility" would have serious consequences for Ethiopia and its neighbors and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Preparations on the Ground

There have been little evidence of significant troop deployments in the border areas between the both nations.

However, in Ethiopia, government media has displayed completion events of numerous trainees at different defense facilities.

The head of staff section of the defense force, General Hachalu, commented lately in an conversation that the military was in a "strong stance" as "numerous of recruits" were enlisting, which he said was "a warning to our enemies".

Historical Background of the Tension

For more than half a century from the late 19th century, the territory was governed by colonial powers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then controlled by the British administration before turning into a federated part of Ethiopia.

However in 1962 the Ethiopian emperor terminated this agreement and Eritrea became totally absorbed into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year civil war occurred, finishing with the government's loss in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then approved by Eritreans in a plebiscite in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were good relations between the governments in Ethiopia's capital and Eritrea's capital, but they fell out over the exact location of their common border, resulting in hostilities in 1998.

Though this finished in a truce in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the both countries remained at in dispute.

This changed in 2018, when the Prime Minister made gestures to Eritrean President the president. The two signed a statement that the hostilities was concluded – a decision that earned the Prime Minister the prestigious award.

The both administrations were then partners in the country's 2020-2022 internal conflict in the northern region.

But ties have subsequently deteriorated anew.