🔗 Share this article Intensifying War of Words Among Ethiopia and Eritrea Triggers Fears of Military Confrontation Mounting worries have emerged regarding the possibility of warfare among East African countries, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as confrontational discourse has ratcheted up in the last month. The Ethiopian government and Eritrea worked together in the armed struggle in Tigray but they have later become estranged. What Did Ethiopian Officials Stated? Landlocked Ethiopia's requests for access to the Red Sea through Eritrea has provoked a heated verbal exchange. The Ethiopian leader first openly declared in last year that his country's maritime access was an existential matter, statements that Eritrea dismissed. Ties between the neighboring nations have frequently been strained. Following a decades-long struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a long Red Sea coastline, officially seceded from Ethiopia in 1993, leaving it landlocked. Five years later, a military clash erupted in which numerous people died. Recent Comments from Ethiopian Government Prime Minister Abiy and military leader the army commander have directly stated control of Eritrean southern port of Assab – some 60 km from the frontier - and implied the intention to take it by force. In early September, Abiy said Ethiopia's "mistake" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a due to Eritrean independence would be "addressed in the future". The Ethiopian envoy to Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that the port was "belonging to Ethiopia" and would be restored "by force". Eritrean Answer to the Claims In the face of persistent warnings from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's response has been restricted to brief comments on social media from Communications Head Yemane Gebremeskel. He has rejected Ethiopia's demand for access to the Red Sea labeling it "risky" and a "toxic agenda" of "irredentism" – a strategy of claiming back previous domains. Government spokespeople cautioned on 16 September that moves to legitimise "blatant hostility" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its regional partners and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached". Defense Preparations on the Ground There have been no reports of large-scale army activities in the border areas between the neighboring states. Nonetheless, in the country, government media has displayed graduation ceremonies of numerous trainees at multiple army bases. The director of human resources department of the defense force, General Hachalu, commented lately in an conversation that the army was in a "strong stance" as "numerous of young people" were entering service, which he said was "a warning to our enemies". Previous Roots of the Conflict For over fifty years from 1890, Eritrea was governed by Italian rulers. Following World War II, it was then controlled by the UK forces before turning into a associated territory of the Ethiopian empire. However in 1962 Emperor Haile Selassie I cancelled this agreement and the region became fully incorporated into the Ethiopian state. A extended internal conflict occurred, finishing with military reversal in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then endorsed by voters in a plebiscite in 1993. For a few years in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the leadership in Ethiopia's capital and Eritrea's capital, but they clashed over the exact location of their mutual frontier, resulting in conflict in 1998. Although this concluded in a ceasefire agreement in 2000, it was partially applied, and the neighbors stayed at odds. This situation improved in 2018, when Abiy made approaches to Eritrean President President Isaias. The two signed a statement that the hostilities was concluded – a action that earned the Prime Minister the prestigious award. The both administrations were then partners in Ethiopia's 2020-2022 armed struggle in the northern region. But diplomatic connections have later worsened again.