Rising Verbal Conflict Involving Ethiopian Government and Eritrea Raises Concerns of Armed Clash

Increasing worries have emerged regarding the potential of military engagement between East African neighbours, Ethiopia and the Eritrean government, as aggressive rhetoric has intensified in the last month.

What Did Ethiopian Officials Said?

Landlocked Ethiopia's requests for access to the sea coast through Eritrea has triggered a fierce war of words.

Ethiopian Prime Minister previously announced in the previous year that his government's access to the sea was an existential matter, statements that Eritrean authorities ignored.

Relations between the both governments have often been tense. After a prolonged battle for independence, Eritrea, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) Red Sea coastline, officially seceded from Ethiopia in 1993, rendering it without sea access.

Subsequently, a border war broke out in which over a hundred thousand people were killed.

Latest Comments from Ethiopian Government

Prime Minister Abiy and military leader General Birhanu Jula have openly claimed sovereignty of Eritrea's maritime facility of the port of Assab – about 60km from the boundary - and hinted at the wish to capture it through military means.

On 1 September, Abiy said Ethiopia's "blunder" of losing access to the sea as a result of Eritrea's separation would be "corrected soon".

The Ethiopian envoy to neighboring Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that the port was "Ethiopia's wealth" and would be returned "by force".

Eritrean Answer to the Threats

In the face of persistent warnings from Ethiopian officials, Asmara's position has been limited to brief comments on social media from Communications Head the minister.

Officials have denied Ethiopian requests for maritime entry describing it as "risky" and a "negative policy" of "irredentism" – a strategy of retaking former lands.

Government spokespeople cautioned on mid-September that moves to validate "obvious provocation" would have serious consequences for Ethiopia and its neighbouring countries and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Activities on the Border

There have been few indications of significant troop deployments in the frontier regions between the neighboring states.

However, in Ethiopia, government media has shown completion events of many recruits at multiple army bases.

The director of personnel division of the armed forces, General Hachalu, recently said in an interview that the army was in a "strong stance" as "many thousands of youths" were entering service, which he said was "a warning to our opponents".

Historical Roots of the Conflict

For over fifty years from the late 19th century, Eritrea was governed by Italian rulers.

After World War II, it was then managed by the British military before evolving into a integrated region of Ethiopia.

However in 1962 the ruler cancelled this agreement and the region became completely integrated into Ethiopia.

A three-decade long civil war ensued, finishing with military reversal in 1991. Independence was then endorsed by the population in a vote in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the authorities in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they clashed over the exact location of their shared boundary, resulting in conflict in 1998.

Even though this concluded in a peace deal in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the two nations remained at in dispute.

This ended in 2018, when the Prime Minister made gestures to Eritrea's leader Isaias Afwerki. The two agreed to a declaration that the conflict was over – a action that gained the Prime Minister the prestigious award.

The both administrations were then partners in the country's recent civil war in Tigray.

Yet ties have subsequently deteriorated once more.