Ethiopia Accuses Eritrea of Planning Military Attack  

Ethiopia is accusing the government of neighboring Eritrea of cooperating with an opposition group based in Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region to prepare for a military offensive, sparking concerns of renewed fighting between the two over control of the Red Sea, the BBC reported Wednesday.  

In a letter addressed to United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres, Ethiopia’s Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos claimed the existence of clear “collusion” between Eritrea’s government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF). The TPLF was the dominant political force for decades in Ethiopia prior to 2018 and fought a civil war against the central government from 2020 to 2022, Al Jazeera wrote. 

“The collusion between the Eritrean government and the TPLF has become more evident over the past few months,” said the letter, quoted by Agence France-Presse. “The hardliner faction of the TPLF and the Eritrean government are actively preparing to wage war against Ethiopia.” 

Ethiopia also accused Eritrea and the TPLF of “funding, mobilizing and directing armed groups” in the northern Amhara region in Ethiopia, where the federal army has been fighting militias known as the Fano. 

Eritrea has not commented on the letter, but relations with Ethiopia have become increasingly tense in recent months.  

Eritrea accuses its landlocked neighbor of wanting to take over its Assab port on the Red Sea. Ethiopia has expressed interest in regaining sea access, which it lost when Eritrea gained independence in 1993. 

In his letter, Timothewos said that Ethiopia wants to carry out “good faith negotiations” with Eritrea. Meanwhile, the letter accused Eritrea of trying to provoke conflict against Ethiopia by claiming to feel threatened by Ethiopia’s intentions of gaining sea access. 

The relationship between Ethiopia and Eritrea has been marked by decades of bloody clashes.   

After Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia, the two fought a border war from 1998 to 2000 that resulted in tens of thousands of deaths. Relations improved in 2018 after Abiy Ahmed became Ethiopia’s prime minister and made peace with Eritrea – winning the Nobel Peace Prize for it – which led the Eritrean army to support Ethiopian government forces in the war with Tigray. However, relations soured again after a peace treaty with Tigray.