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Mounting worries have emerged over the chance of armed conflict among Horn of Africa neighbours, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as aggressive discourse has escalated in recent weeks.

What Has Ethiopia Declared?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, calls for entry to the Red Sea through Eritrea has triggered a intense rhetorical conflict.

PM Abiy Ahmed previously announced in 2023 that his nation's access to the sea was an existential matter, remarks that Eritrean authorities rejected.

Relations between the both governments have frequently been strained. Following a decades-long battle for independence, the Eritrean state, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) Red Sea coastline, legally broke away from Ethiopia in 1993, rendering it cut off from the sea.

Subsequently, a border war erupted in which numerous people died.

Current Remarks from Ethiopia's Officials

Prime Minister Abiy and military leader Field Marshal Birhanu Jula have directly stated control of Eritrean maritime facility of the port of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the border - and implied the desire to capture it through military means.

In early September, Abiy said Ethiopia's "mistake" of losing entry to the sea as a because of Eritrea secession would be "rectified in the future".

Ethiopia's ambassador to neighboring Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that the port was "Ethiopia's wealth" and would be returned "through military action".

Eritrean Response to the Statements

Despite ongoing challenges from Ethiopia, Eritrea's response has been restricted to short statements on social media from Information Minister Yemane G..

Officials have denied Ethiopia's push for maritime entry calling it "risky" and a "harmful plan" of "expansionism" – a strategy of reclaiming lost territory.

Eritrean authorities warned on 16 September that efforts to justify "obvious provocation" would have significant repercussions for the Ethiopian government and its regional partners and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Preparations on the Border

There have been little evidence of significant troop deployments in the frontier regions between the both nations.

Nonetheless, in Ethiopia, national TV has broadcast graduation ceremonies of numerous trainees at multiple army bases.

The head of staff section of the armed forces, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, stated recently in an discussion that the military was in a "strong stance" as "tens of thousands of young people" were joining it, which he said was "a signal to our opponents".

Historical Background of the Conflict

For decades from 1890, the territory was ruled by Italian colonisers.

After the end of Italian rule, it was then managed by the British administration before evolving into a integrated region of the Ethiopian empire.

Yet in 1962 Emperor Haile Selassie I ended this system and the region became totally absorbed into Ethiopia.

A three-decade long armed struggle occurred, concluding with military reversal in the early 1990s. Independence was then confirmed by Eritreans in a vote in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the governments in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they fell out over the specific demarcation of their common border, causing war in 1998.

Although this ended in a peace deal in 2000, it was partially applied, and the neighbors stayed at loggerheads.

This changed in 2018, when Abiy made approaches to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The two endorsed a declaration that the conflict was over – a action that earned the Prime Minister the international recognition.

The two governments were then cooperators in the country's recent civil war in Tigray.

Yet relations have subsequently deteriorated once more.