🔗 Share this article Rising War of Words Involving Ethiopian Government and Eritrea Sparks Fears of Armed Clash Mounting worries are present regarding the potential of armed conflict between Horn of Africa neighbors, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as confrontational language has escalated in recent weeks. The Ethiopian government and The Eritrean government worked together in the internal conflict in northern Ethiopia but they have later become estranged. What Did Ethiopia Stated? Landlocked Ethiopia's calls for passage to the sea coast through Eritrea has sparked a intense war of words. Ethiopian Prime Minister initially stated publicly in the previous year that his country's access to the sea was an vital issue, remarks that Eritrea rejected. Relations between the both governments have often been tense. After a prolonged battle for independence, Eritrea, which has a extensive maritime frontage, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in 1993, leaving it cut off from the sea. Subsequently, a military clash erupted in which more than 100,000 people were killed. Current Remarks from Ethiopia's Officials Abiy and army chief the army commander have publicly asserted sovereignty of Eritrean coastal city of the port of Assab – about 60km from the border - and implied the wish to seize it militarily. Recently, the Prime Minister said the country's "mistake" of losing access to the sea as a result of Eritrean independence would be "rectified in the future". The Ethiopian envoy to Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be restored "by force". Eritrea's Answer to the Claims Amid continuous warnings from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's response has been confined to concise remarks on X from Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel. Officials have denied Ethiopian requests for access to the Red Sea describing it as "hazardous" and a "harmful plan" of "expansionism" – a approach of reclaiming lost territory. The information ministry warned on recently that efforts to justify "obvious provocation" would have major implications for the Ethiopian government and its regional partners and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached". Defense Movements on the Border There have been few indications of large-scale army activities in the boundary zones between the neighboring states. Nonetheless, in the country, government media has shown graduation ceremonies of thousands of cadets at multiple army bases. The director of staff section of the armed forces, General Hachalu, recently said in an conversation that the army was in a "strong stance" as "many thousands of youths" were enlisting, which he said was "a signal to our enemies". Previous Roots of the Conflict For over fifty years from the late 19th century, Eritrea was administered by colonial powers. Following Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the British administration before turning into a associated territory of the Ethiopian empire. But in the early 1960s the ruler cancelled this agreement and the region became totally absorbed into the Ethiopian state. A three-decade long internal conflict followed, concluding with military reversal in the early 1990s. Independence was then endorsed by Eritreans in a referendum in 1993. Temporarily in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the governments in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they clashed over the specific demarcation of their common border, leading to war in 1998. Even though this concluded in a peace deal in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the two nations continued at odds. This changed in 2018, when the Prime Minister made gestures to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The two signed a announcement that the hostilities was finished – a action that won Abiy the prestigious award. The both administrations were then allies in Ethiopia's 2020-2022 armed struggle in the northern region. However relations have later worsened once more.