🔗 Share this article Escalating Rhetorical Battle Between Ethiopia and Eritrea Raises Concerns of Armed Clash Growing apprehensions have emerged about the potential of warfare involving Horn of Africa neighbours, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as confrontational rhetoric has ratcheted up in recent weeks. Ethiopia and The Eritrean government cooperated in the civil war in northern Ethiopia but they have since fallen out. What Has Ethiopian Officials Declared? Landlocked Ethiopia's requests for entry to the sea coast through Eritrea has provoked a fierce verbal exchange. Ethiopian Prime Minister first openly declared in 2023 that his government's access to the sea was an existential matter, comments that Eritrea ignored. Diplomatic connections between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. Following a long-standing fight for sovereignty, the Eritrean state, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) maritime frontage, formally separated from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, rendering it landlocked. In 1998, a territorial conflict erupted in which more than 100,000 people were killed. Recent Comments from Ethiopian Officials Abiy and army chief Field Marshal Birhanu Jula have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrea's southern port of Assab – some 60 km from the border - and suggested the intention to seize it militarily. Recently, Abiy said Ethiopia's "mistake" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a because of Eritrea's separation would be "addressed tomorrow". Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that Assab was "belonging to Ethiopia" and would be restored "by force". Eritrean Response to the Threats Amid persistent threats from Ethiopia, Asmara's position has been limited to brief comments on X from Communications Head Yemane G.. He has rejected Ethiopia's demand for sea access describing it as "hazardous" and a "negative policy" of "expansionism" – a policy of reclaiming previous domains. The information ministry cautioned on mid-September that attempts to legitimise "flagrant aggression" would have significant repercussions for Ethiopia and its neighbors and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached". Security Preparations on the Border There have been little evidence of large-scale army activities in the frontier regions between the two countries. Nonetheless, in the country, government media has shown training completions of thousands of cadets at various military training camps. The director of human resources department of the armed forces, General Hachalu, recently said in an interview that the army was in a "secure situation" as "numerous of recruits" were entering service, which he said was "a warning to our enemies". Past Background of the Conflict For more than half a century from the late 19th century, the territory was governed by Italian rulers. After the end of Italian rule, it was then controlled by the British military before evolving into a associated territory of Ethiopia. But in 1962 the Ethiopian emperor terminated this agreement and Eritrea became totally absorbed into Ethiopia. A extended armed struggle followed, finishing with Ethiopia's defeat in 1991. Sovereignty was then approved by the population in a referendum in 1993. Briefly in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the authorities in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they disagreed over the precise positioning of their common border, leading to hostilities in 1998. Even though this ended in a ceasefire agreement in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the two nations remained at loggerheads. This situation improved in 2018, when Abiy made approaches to Eritrea's leader Isaias Afwerki. The both leaders agreed to a announcement that the war was concluded – a decision that won the Prime Minister the Nobel Peace Prize. The both administrations were then allies in the country's previous internal conflict in Tigray. However diplomatic connections have since broken down again.