🔗 Share this article Rising Rhetorical Battle Involving Ethiopia and Eritrean Government Sparks Fears of Conflict Increasing worries have emerged over the possibility of warfare between Horn of Africa neighbours, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as aggressive discourse has ratcheted up in the last month. Ethiopia and The Eritrean government were allies in the armed struggle in northern Ethiopia but they have subsequently disagreed. What Did Ethiopian Officials Said? Landlocked Ethiopia's demands for passage to the maritime outlet through Eritrean territory has provoked a fierce verbal exchange. PM Abiy Ahmed first openly declared in last year that his nation's sea access was an existential matter, remarks that Eritrea dismissed. Ties between the both governments have regularly been difficult. After a decades-long battle for independence, Eritrea, which has a long sea border, formally separated from Ethiopia in 1993, rendering it landlocked. Subsequently, a military clash erupted in which numerous people lost their lives. Recent Statements from Ethiopian Government Prime Minister Abiy and military leader General Birhanu Jula have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrean maritime facility of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the frontier - and suggested the intention to take it by force. On 1 September, the Prime Minister said the country's "mistake" of losing entry to the sea as a result of Eritrean independence would be "addressed soon". Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that Assab was "belonging to Ethiopia" and would be restored "using武力". Eritrea's Reaction to the Claims Amid continuous challenges from Ethiopia, Eritrea's reaction has been restricted to short statements on online platforms from Information Minister the minister. He has rejected Ethiopia's demand for sea access describing it as "dangerous" and a "harmful plan" of "irredentism" – a approach of claiming back former lands. The information ministry cautioned on 16 September that moves to justify "flagrant aggression" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its neighbouring countries and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached". Security Activities on the Border So far, there are little evidence of large-scale army activities in the boundary zones between the both nations. Nonetheless, in Ethiopia, government media has broadcast completion events of numerous trainees at multiple army bases. The director of staff section of the armed forces, the officer, recently said in an discussion that the military was in a "reliable position" as "numerous of youths" were enlisting, which he said was "a message to our opponents". Historical Origins of the Tension For more than half a century from 1890, the territory was ruled by Italian rulers. Following the end of Italian rule, it was then controlled by the UK forces before turning into a integrated region of the Ethiopian empire. Yet in 1962 the ruler ended this system and the region became fully incorporated into the Ethiopian state. A extended internal conflict ensued, concluding with military reversal in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then endorsed by Eritreans in a referendum in 1993. For a few years in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the leadership in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they fell out over the precise positioning of their shared boundary, leading to war in 1998. Even though this ended in a truce in 2000, it was partially applied, and the two nations continued at in dispute. This ended in 2018, when Abiy made overtures to Eritrean President the president. The both leaders agreed to a declaration that the conflict was concluded – a decision that won the Prime Minister the international recognition. The both administrations were then allies in the country's previous armed struggle in Tigray. Yet ties have subsequently deteriorated once more.