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Increasing concerns have emerged regarding the potential of armed conflict between East African countries, the Ethiopian government and the Eritrean government, as aggressive language has escalated in the past few weeks.

What Has Ethiopia Declared?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, calls for access to the Red Sea through Eritrea has provoked a fierce verbal exchange.

The Ethiopian leader previously announced in the previous year that his nation's access to the sea was an crucial concern, remarks that Eritrean authorities ignored.

Diplomatic connections between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. After a long-standing fight for sovereignty, the Eritrean state, which has a long Red Sea coastline, legally broke away from Ethiopia in the early 1990s, rendering it without sea access.

Five years later, a border war erupted in which numerous people lost their lives.

Current Remarks from Ethiopia's Leadership

Abiy and army chief the army commander have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrea's maritime facility of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the boundary - and implied the intention to take it by force.

On 1 September, the Prime Minister said the country's "blunder" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a due to Eritrea secession would be "addressed tomorrow".

The Ethiopian envoy to neighboring Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be given back "through military action".

Eritrean Response to the Statements

Amid continuous warnings from Ethiopia, Eritrea's reaction has been restricted to brief comments on online platforms from Communications Head Yemane Gebremeskel.

Officials have denied Ethiopia's push for access to the Red Sea labeling it "hazardous" and a "harmful plan" of "territorial claims" – a approach of reclaiming former lands.

The information ministry cautioned on recently that moves to validate "flagrant aggression" would have serious consequences for the Ethiopian government and its neighbouring countries and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Movements on the Border

So far, there are no reports of significant troop deployments in the border areas between the neighboring states.

However, in the country, government media has broadcast graduation ceremonies of many recruits at different defense facilities.

The head of personnel division of the defense force, the officer, stated recently in an interview that the army was in a "secure situation" as "tens of thousands of recruits" were entering service, which he said was "a message to our opponents".

Past Background of the Tension

For more than half a century from the late 19th century, the territory was governed by Italian colonisers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then managed by the British administration before becoming a federated part of the Ethiopian empire.

But in 1962 the ruler ended this system and the region became totally absorbed into the Ethiopian state.

A thirty-year civil war ensued, finishing with the government's loss in 1991. Autonomy was then confirmed by the population in a vote in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were good relations between the authorities in Addis Ababa and Eritrea's capital, but they disagreed over the exact location of their common border, resulting in war in 1998.

Even though this ended in a truce in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the neighbors stayed at odds.

This ended in 2018, when Abiy made overtures to Eritrea's leader Isaias Afwerki. The two endorsed a declaration that the war was concluded – a move that won Abiy the prestigious award.

The neighboring states were then allies in the country's previous armed struggle in the northern region.

But ties have since broken down again.