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Mounting worries have emerged about the chance of armed conflict involving Horn of Africa neighbours, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as hostile rhetoric has intensified in recent weeks.

What Did Ethiopia Declared?

Landlocked Ethiopia's calls for passage to the Red Sea through Eritrea has sparked a heated war of words.

The Ethiopian leader previously announced in 2023 that his government's sea access was an vital issue, comments that Eritrean authorities ignored.

Relations between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. Following a prolonged fight for sovereignty, Eritrea, which has a long maritime frontage, officially seceded from Ethiopia in 1993, rendering it landlocked.

Subsequently, a military clash broke out in which numerous people were killed.

Current Remarks from Ethiopia's Government

Prime Minister Abiy and army chief General Birhanu Jula have publicly asserted ownership of Eritrean southern port of the port of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the frontier - and hinted at the intention to capture it through military means.

On 1 September, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia's "blunder" of being denied passage to the sea as a result of Eritrean independence would be "addressed soon".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that the port was "belonging to Ethiopia" and would be returned "using武力".

Eritrea's Response to the Claims

In the face of persistent threats from Ethiopia, Asmara's position has been limited to brief comments on X from Communications Head Yemane G..

Officials have denied Ethiopian requests for maritime entry calling it "hazardous" and a "harmful plan" of "irredentism" – a strategy of reclaiming previous domains.

Eritrean authorities warned on 16 September that moves to validate "obvious provocation" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its neighbouring countries and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Security Movements on the Region

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

Nonetheless, in the country, national TV has shown graduation ceremonies of many recruits at different defense facilities.

The leader of personnel division of the military, General Hachalu, commented lately in an conversation that the defense forces was in a "reliable position" as "many thousands of young people" were enlisting, which he said was "a message to our adversaries".

Historical Origins of the Tension

For more than half a century from the late 19th century, Eritrea was governed by colonial powers.

Following Italy's defeat, it was then controlled by the UK forces before evolving into a federated part of Ethiopia.

However in the early 1960s the ruler cancelled this arrangement and Eritrea became completely integrated into the Ethiopian state.

A thirty-year civil war occurred, ending with the government's loss in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then approved by the population in a referendum in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the governments in Addis Ababa and Eritrea's capital, but they disagreed over the precise positioning of their shared boundary, resulting in conflict in 1998.

Though this ended in a peace deal in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the neighbors stayed at in dispute.

This situation improved in 2018, when the Prime Minister made gestures to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The two agreed to a declaration that the war was concluded – a decision that won the Prime Minister the international recognition.

The two governments were then allies in Ethiopia's 2020-2022 internal conflict in the northern region.

But diplomatic connections have since broken down once more.