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Growing worries have emerged about the chance of military engagement involving East African countries, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as confrontational rhetoric has escalated in the last month.

What Has Ethiopian Officials Said?

Landlocked Ethiopia's calls for access to the sea coast through Eritrea has triggered a heated war of words.

The Ethiopian leader initially stated publicly in 2023 that his country's sea access was an vital issue, statements that Eritrean authorities dismissed.

Ties between the two countries have often been tense. Following a long-standing struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) Red Sea coastline, formally separated from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, rendering it cut off from the sea.

In 1998, a border war broke out in which more than 100,000 people died.

Current Statements from Ethiopian Leadership

Prime Minister Abiy and army chief the army commander have publicly asserted ownership of Eritrean southern port of the port of Assab – about 60km from the border - and implied the intention to take it by force.

Recently, Abiy said Ethiopia's "error" of losing access to the sea as a because of Eritrean independence would be "corrected soon".

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

Eritrean Answer to the Statements

In the face of persistent threats from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's reaction has been restricted to concise remarks on social media from Communications Head Yemane G..

He has rejected Ethiopia's push for sea access labeling it "dangerous" and a "toxic agenda" of "irredentism" – a approach of retaking former lands.

Government spokespeople warned on recently that attempts to justify "flagrant aggression" would have major implications for the Ethiopian government and its neighbors and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Military Preparations on the Border

So far, there are few indications of large-scale army activities in the boundary zones between the neighboring states.

However, in Ethiopia, government media has shown completion events of numerous trainees at various military training camps.

The leader of staff section of the military, General Hachalu, commented lately in an conversation that the army was in a "strong stance" as "many thousands of young people" were enlisting, which he said was "a warning to our opponents".

Historical Background of the Conflict

For over fifty years from the late 19th century, Eritrea was administered by colonial powers.

After World War II, it was then administered by the British administration before evolving into a associated territory of the Ethiopian empire.

However in 1962 the ruler cancelled this arrangement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into the Ethiopian state.

A three-decade long civil war occurred, finishing with military reversal in the early 1990s. Sovereignty was then confirmed by Eritreans in a vote in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the authorities in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they disagreed over the specific demarcation of their shared boundary, resulting in hostilities in 1998.

Even though this finished in a ceasefire agreement in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the two nations stayed at in dispute.

This situation improved in 2018, when Abiy made gestures to Eritrean President the president. The both leaders agreed to a declaration that the conflict was over – a decision that gained the Prime Minister the Nobel Peace Prize.

The two governments were then cooperators in Ethiopia's 2020-2022 armed struggle in Tigray.

But relations have subsequently deteriorated again.