Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of an “all-out invasion” in a message to the United Nations Security Council, while Eritrea says it is facing a “war of aggression” from its neighbour. Gedion said that Eritrean troops had advanced up to 60 kilometres (37 miles) into Ethiopia’s northern Tigray region and demanded their withdrawal, just days after the two nations cut diplomatic ties. Eritrea’s Minister of Information Yemane Gebremeskel rejected Ethiopia’s claims.
Yemane said Asmara had shown restraint since landlocked Ethiopia had essentially declared a war against Eritrea when it stated in 2023 that it would gain access to the sea. Citing statements made by Ethiopian officials, Yemane accused Addis Ababa of using the current conflict to take Assab, an Eritrean port, in order to restore access to the Red Sea. Eritrea also denied Ethiopia’s claim that it is backing the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), which is part of an alliance of seven armed groups that has been attempting to overthrow Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government since September.
Over the past week, Ethiopia’s army has pushed back the TPLF and seized the Tigrayan capital, Mekelle. Witnesses also told the news agency that rebels had lost the Tigrayan cities of Shire and Adigrat. Eritrean troops were reportedly seen in Adigrat before Ethiopian drone strikes hit them, according to several witnesses.
Ethiopia and Eritrea have traded accusations since the reported incursions by Eritrean troops this week raised fears of outright war in the region, where the two nations have fought previous conflicts. The stakes have been raised this time around by conflicts in the Horn of Africa region and tensions across the Red Sea. Diplomatic ties between the two have collapsed amid the escalation: Ethiopia closed its embassy in Asmara and ordered 10 Eritrean diplomats to leave the country last week.
In response, Eritrea announced it was severing ties. The neighbours have a tumultuous history, as Eritrea won independence from Ethiopia in 1993 and they fought a border war for two years in 1998. Relations improved slightly in 2018 when Abiy took power in Addis Ababa, and Eritrea fought alongside Ethiopia against the TPLF in a civil war from 2020 to 2022.
Eritrea, however, was not part of the peace deal that ended the war, which soured ties soon afterwards. Tensions are also fuelled by Abiy’s repeated claim that landlocked Ethiopia – which lost its access to the coast when Eritrea secured independence – has a right to sea access, which Eritrea sees as a threat to seize its Red Sea port of Assab.
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