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Increasing apprehensions exist about the potential of armed conflict among Horn of Africa neighbors, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as hostile rhetoric has escalated in the past few weeks.

What Did Ethiopia Said?

Landlocked Ethiopia's demands for entry to the Red Sea through Eritrea has provoked a fierce verbal exchange.

PM Abiy Ahmed initially stated publicly in the previous year that his country's access to the sea was an crucial concern, statements that Eritrean authorities dismissed.

Diplomatic connections between the neighboring nations have often been tense. After a prolonged battle for independence, the Eritrean state, which has a extensive Red Sea coastline, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in 1993, making it cut off from the sea.

Subsequently, a military clash erupted in which numerous people died.

Current Remarks from Ethiopian Leadership

Abiy and army chief the army commander have publicly asserted ownership of Eritrean coastal city of the port of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the boundary - and hinted at the desire to seize it militarily.

Recently, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia's "mistake" of losing entry to the sea as a because of Eritrea secession would be "corrected soon".

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

Eritrea's Reaction to the Threats

Amid ongoing threats from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's reaction has been limited to concise remarks on X from Information Minister the minister.

The minister has dismissed Ethiopia's demand for access to the Red Sea calling it "risky" and a "negative policy" of "irredentism" – a strategy of retaking previous domains.

Government spokespeople alerted on 16 September that efforts to justify "flagrant aggression" would have major implications for the Ethiopian government and its regional partners and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Security Activities on the Border

Currently, there are few indications of large-scale army activities in the boundary zones between the two countries.

Nonetheless, in Ethiopia, national TV has shown training completions of thousands of cadets at various military training camps.

The leader of human resources department of the defense force, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, recently said in an discussion that the military was in a "reliable position" as "numerous of youths" were entering service, which he said was "a signal to our enemies".

Historical Roots of the Dispute

For decades from 1890, the territory was ruled by Italian rulers.

Following Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the UK forces before turning into a associated territory of the Ethiopian empire.

Yet in the early 1960s the Ethiopian emperor ended this agreement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year civil war followed, ending with the government's loss in 1991. Independence was then confirmed by voters in a referendum in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the authorities in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they clashed over the specific demarcation of their mutual frontier, leading to war in 1998.

Even though this finished in a ceasefire agreement in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the both countries stayed at loggerheads.

This changed in 2018, when Abiy made gestures to Eritrea's leader the president. The two signed a announcement that the hostilities was over – a move that won Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize.

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

However relations have since broken down anew.