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Mounting worries exist about the possibility of military engagement involving Horn of Africa neighbors, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as aggressive language has ratcheted up in the past few weeks.

What Did Ethiopia Said?

Landlocked Ethiopia's requests for passage to the maritime outlet through Eritrean territory has sparked a intense war of words.

PM Abiy Ahmed previously announced in 2023 that his nation's access to the sea was an crucial concern, statements that Eritrean authorities dismissed.

Relations between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. Following a long-standing struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a extensive maritime frontage, legally broke away from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, making it cut off from the sea.

Five years later, a border war erupted in which numerous people died.

Current Statements from Ethiopian Leadership

Prime Minister Abiy and army chief Field Marshal Birhanu Jula have openly claimed control of Eritrea's southern port of Assab – about 60km from the boundary - and hinted at the wish to take it by force.

In early September, Abiy said the country's "error" of losing entry to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrea's separation would be "corrected soon".

The Ethiopian envoy to neighboring Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be restored "by force".

Eritrea's Response to the Threats

In the face of ongoing challenges from Ethiopia, Eritrea's response has been restricted to short statements on online platforms from Information Minister Yemane G..

He has rejected Ethiopia's demand for sea access labeling it "hazardous" and a "toxic agenda" of "expansionism" – a strategy of claiming back previous domains.

Government spokespeople cautioned on 16 September that moves to legitimise "obvious provocation" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its neighbouring countries and is a "boundary that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Military Activities on the Border

Currently, there are little evidence of significant troop deployments in the frontier regions between the two countries.

Nevertheless, in the country, national TV has displayed training completions of many recruits at multiple army bases.

The leader of personnel division of the defense force, the officer, stated recently in an discussion that the defense forces was in a "secure situation" as "numerous of recruits" were enlisting, which he said was "a warning to our adversaries".

Past Background of the Dispute

For decades from the late 19th century, Eritrea was ruled by colonial powers.

Following the end of Italian rule, it was then controlled by the British administration before becoming a associated territory of the Ethiopian empire.

Yet in 1962 Emperor Haile Selassie I ended this agreement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year armed struggle ensued, finishing with military reversal in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then approved by Eritreans in a referendum in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the leadership in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they disagreed over the precise positioning of their common border, leading to conflict in 1998.

Although this concluded in a truce in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the neighbors remained at odds.

This situation improved in 2018, when Abiy made overtures to Eritrea's leader President Isaias. The two signed a declaration that the hostilities was finished – a decision that earned Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize.

The both administrations were then cooperators in the country's 2020-2022 internal conflict in Tigray.

However diplomatic connections have subsequently deteriorated again.