Rising Verbal Conflict Involving Ethiopia and Eritrean Government Sparks Concerns of Conflict

Mounting concerns have emerged about the possibility of military engagement between Horn of Africa countries, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as aggressive discourse has intensified in the last month.

What Did Ethiopian Officials Said?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, demands for entry to the sea coast through Eritrean territory has triggered a fierce rhetorical conflict.

Ethiopian Prime Minister initially stated publicly in last year that his nation's maritime access was an crucial concern, statements that Eritrean authorities rejected.

Relations between the both governments have often been tense. Following a decades-long fight for sovereignty, Eritrea, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) maritime frontage, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in 1993, rendering it cut off from the sea.

In 1998, a border war erupted in which numerous people lost their lives.

Current Remarks from Ethiopia's Leadership

Prime Minister Abiy and military leader Field Marshal Birhanu Jula have openly claimed control of Eritrea's maritime facility of the port of Assab – about 60km from the frontier - and hinted at the desire to capture it through military means.

In early September, the Prime Minister said the country's "blunder" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a because of Eritrea's separation would be "corrected tomorrow".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that the port was "Ethiopia's wealth" and would be restored "through military action".

Eritrean Reaction to the Claims

Amid persistent warnings from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's reaction has been confined to short statements on online platforms from Information Minister Yemane G..

The minister has dismissed Ethiopia's push for sea access describing it as "hazardous" and a "harmful plan" of "irredentism" – a strategy of claiming back previous domains.

The information ministry alerted on recently that moves to legitimise "obvious provocation" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its neighbouring countries and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Security Movements on the Ground

There have been few indications of large-scale army activities in the border areas between the neighboring states.

Nevertheless, in Ethiopia, state television has broadcast training completions of numerous trainees at different defense facilities.

The head of personnel division of the defense force, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, stated recently in an interview that the military was in a "secure situation" as "numerous of youths" were entering service, which he said was "a message to our adversaries".

Previous Background of the Conflict

For more than half a century from the late 19th century, Eritrea was administered by Italian colonisers.

Following World War II, it was then administered by the British administration before becoming a associated territory of Ethiopia.

However in the early 1960s Emperor Haile Selassie I terminated this system and Eritrea became completely integrated into the Ethiopian state.

A three-decade long civil war occurred, ending with Ethiopia's defeat in 1991. Autonomy was then approved by voters in a plebiscite in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were good relations between the leadership in Addis Ababa and Eritrea's capital, but they clashed over the specific demarcation of their shared boundary, leading to war in 1998.

Though this concluded in a truce in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the neighbors remained at odds.

This situation improved in 2018, when the Prime Minister made overtures to Eritrea's leader President Isaias. The two endorsed a statement that the war was finished – a decision that gained the Prime Minister the international recognition.

The two governments were then partners in Ethiopia's recent civil war in Tigray.

However diplomatic connections have subsequently deteriorated anew.