🔗 Share this article Rising War of Words Involving Ethiopia and Eritrea Sparks Anxieties of Conflict Mounting worries exist regarding the possibility of warfare among Horn of Africa countries, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as aggressive language has ratcheted up in recent weeks. The Ethiopian government and The Eritrean government cooperated in the armed struggle in Tigray but they have since fallen out. What Has Ethiopia Said? Ethiopia's, being landlocked, calls for entry to the sea coast through Eritrea has provoked a heated rhetorical conflict. The Ethiopian leader previously announced in last year that his nation's access to the sea was an crucial concern, remarks that Eritrean authorities rejected. Ties between the two countries have often been tense. After a long-standing battle for independence, Eritrea, which has a long Red Sea coastline, formally separated from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, making it landlocked. Five years later, a border war started in which numerous people died. Recent Comments from Ethiopia's Leadership Prime Minister Abiy and army chief the army commander have directly stated control of Eritrean coastal city of the port of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the border - and suggested the desire to capture it through military means. On 1 September, Abiy said Ethiopia's "error" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a because of Eritrea secession would be "corrected soon". The Ethiopian envoy to neighboring Kenya, retired Gen Bacha Debele, said that the port was "belonging to Ethiopia" and would be returned "using武力". Eritrea's Answer to the Threats Amid continuous warnings from Ethiopia, Asmara's position has been confined to brief comments on online platforms from Communications Head the minister. He has rejected Ethiopia's demand for access to the Red Sea calling it "hazardous" and a "harmful plan" of "irredentism" – a approach of claiming back previous domains. Eritrean authorities warned on mid-September that attempts to justify "blatant hostility" would have serious consequences for the Ethiopian government and its neighbouring countries and is a "boundary that should not be crossed|violated|breached". Defense Activities on the Border So far, there are little evidence of major military movements in the border areas between the neighboring states. Nonetheless, in the country, state television has broadcast graduation ceremonies of thousands of cadets at various military training camps. The leader of personnel division of the armed forces, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, recently said in an conversation that the military was in a "reliable position" as "many thousands of young people" were enlisting, which he said was "a message to our enemies". Previous Origins of the Conflict For decades from the late 19th century, Eritrea was ruled by Italian rulers. After Italy's defeat, it was then controlled by the UK forces before becoming a associated territory of the Ethiopian empire. Yet in the early 1960s Emperor Haile Selassie I terminated this agreement and the region became completely integrated into the Ethiopian state. A extended internal conflict followed, finishing with military reversal in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then endorsed by the population in a plebiscite in 1993. Temporarily in the 1990s, there were good relations between the governments in Ethiopia's capital and Eritrea's capital, but they clashed over the precise positioning of their shared boundary, resulting in war in 1998. Although this ended in a ceasefire agreement in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the two nations continued at loggerheads. This changed in 2018, when Abiy made overtures to Eritrea's leader President Isaias. The both leaders agreed to a statement that the war was over – a move that earned Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize. The two governments were then partners in the country's previous armed struggle in the northern region. But ties have subsequently deteriorated again.