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Mounting concerns are present about the possibility of armed conflict among East African neighbours, the Ethiopian government and the Eritrean government, as hostile rhetoric has intensified in the past few weeks.

What Did Ethiopia Declared?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, requests for entry to the sea coast through Eritrean territory has triggered a fierce rhetorical conflict.

PM Abiy Ahmed initially stated publicly in 2023 that his nation's sea access was an vital issue, comments that Eritrean authorities rejected.

Diplomatic connections between the two countries have often been tense. Following a prolonged struggle for freedom, the Eritrean state, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) Red Sea coastline, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, rendering it landlocked.

In 1998, a military clash erupted in which over a hundred thousand people were killed.

Current Statements from Ethiopian Leadership

Prime Minister Abiy and military leader General Birhanu Jula have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrean coastal city of Assab – some 60 km from the boundary - and implied the intention to seize it militarily.

Recently, Abiy said Ethiopia's "error" of losing entry to the sea as a due to Eritrea's separation would be "addressed tomorrow".

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

Eritrean Reaction to the Claims

Despite ongoing warnings from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's reaction has been limited to short statements on online platforms from Communications Head Yemane G..

Officials have denied Ethiopia's demand for sea access describing it as "dangerous" and a "negative policy" of "expansionism" – a strategy of retaking former lands.

The information ministry alerted on mid-September that attempts to justify "flagrant aggression" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its neighbors and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Military Activities on the Ground

There have been little evidence of large-scale army activities in the border areas between the neighboring states.

However, in Ethiopia, national TV has displayed training completions of many recruits at multiple army bases.

The head of personnel division of the defense force, the officer, commented lately in an discussion that the military was in a "secure situation" as "tens of thousands of young people" were enlisting, which he said was "a warning to our enemies".

Past Background of the Tension

For decades from 1890, Eritrea was administered by colonial powers.

After the end of Italian rule, it was then controlled by the UK forces before becoming a integrated region of the Ethiopian empire.

But in 1962 Emperor Haile Selassie I terminated this agreement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into the Ethiopian state.

A three-decade long internal conflict occurred, finishing with military reversal in the early 1990s. Sovereignty was then endorsed by voters in a plebiscite in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were good relations between the leadership in Addis Ababa and Eritrea's capital, but they disagreed over the precise positioning of their common border, causing conflict in 1998.

Although this finished in a peace deal in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the two nations remained at in dispute.

This situation improved in 2018, when Abiy made approaches to Eritrea's leader the president. The both leaders agreed to a statement that the hostilities was finished – a action that won Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize.

The neighboring states were then partners in Ethiopia's previous armed struggle in Tigray.

However ties have subsequently deteriorated once more.