🔗 Share this article Escalating War of Words Involving Ethiopian Government and Eritrea Triggers Fears of Military Confrontation Increasing apprehensions have emerged regarding the possibility of warfare between East African countries, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as confrontational language has intensified in the past few weeks. The Ethiopian government and Eritrea cooperated in the civil war in Tigray but they have later become estranged. What Did Ethiopian Officials Said? Ethiopia's, being landlocked, demands for entry to the Red Sea through Eritrea has sparked a heated verbal exchange. Ethiopian Prime Minister first openly declared in last year that his country's sea access was an existential matter, remarks that Eritrea ignored. Diplomatic connections between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. After a long-standing struggle for freedom, the Eritrean state, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) maritime frontage, formally separated from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, making it without sea access. In 1998, a border war started in which over a hundred thousand people lost their lives. Current Statements from Ethiopia's Government Abiy and army chief General Birhanu Jula have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrean maritime facility of the port of Assab – about 60km from the border - and implied the wish to seize it militarily. On 1 September, Abiy said Ethiopia's "mistake" of losing access to the sea as a because of Eritrean independence would be "rectified in the future". The Ethiopian envoy to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that Assab was "Ethiopia's wealth" and would be restored "using武力". Eritrea's Reaction to the Claims Despite persistent threats from Ethiopian officials, Asmara's position has been confined to concise remarks on online platforms from Communications Head Yemane Gebremeskel. The minister has dismissed Ethiopia's demand for maritime entry calling it "hazardous" and a "harmful plan" of "irredentism" – a policy of retaking lost territory. The information ministry warned on recently that moves to validate "blatant hostility" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its regional partners and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached". Security Activities on the Ground So far, there are little evidence of large-scale army activities in the frontier regions between the two countries. However, in Ethiopia, government media has displayed training completions of many recruits at various military training camps. The head of human resources department of the defense force, General Hachalu, commented lately in an interview that the military was in a "secure situation" as "many thousands of young people" were entering service, which he said was "a message to our adversaries". Previous Roots of the Tension For more than half a century from the late 19th century, the territory was administered by colonial powers. Following Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the British administration before evolving into a federated part of Ethiopia. However in the early 1960s the ruler terminated this arrangement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into Ethiopia. A thirty-year civil war occurred, ending with Ethiopia's defeat in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then endorsed by the population in a vote in 1993. Temporarily in the 1990s, there were good relations between the leadership in Ethiopia's capital and Eritrea's capital, but they clashed 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 both countries remained at odds. This ended in 2018, when Abiy made approaches to Eritrea's leader the president. The two agreed to a declaration that the hostilities was over – a action that won Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize. The both administrations were then allies in Ethiopia's previous armed struggle in the northern region. But relations have subsequently deteriorated once more.