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Increasing apprehensions are present over the possibility of warfare involving Horn of Africa countries, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as aggressive rhetoric has intensified in the past few weeks.

What Has Ethiopia Stated?

Landlocked Ethiopia's requests for passage to the Red Sea through Eritrean territory has sparked a fierce verbal exchange.

The Ethiopian leader first openly declared in the previous year that his country's maritime access was an existential matter, comments that Eritrean authorities ignored.

Ties between the two countries have regularly been difficult. After a long-standing struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) sea border, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, rendering it landlocked.

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

Current Statements from Ethiopia's Officials

Abiy and military leader the army commander have openly claimed ownership of Eritrean maritime facility of the port of Assab – some 60 km from the boundary - and implied the desire to seize it militarily.

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

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, retired Gen Bacha Debele, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be returned "through military action".

Eritrean Answer to the Statements

In the face of continuous threats from Ethiopia, Asmara's position has been limited to short statements on X from Communications Head Yemane G..

Officials have denied Ethiopia's push for maritime entry labeling it "hazardous" and a "toxic agenda" of "irredentism" – a approach of reclaiming previous domains.

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

Defense Preparations on the Border

So far, there are little evidence of major military movements in the boundary zones between the neighboring states.

Nevertheless, in Ethiopia, government media has shown training completions of thousands of cadets at multiple army bases.

The head of staff section of the armed forces, General Hachalu, stated recently in an discussion that the defense forces was in a "secure situation" as "many thousands of youths" 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, Eritrea was administered by colonial powers.

After the end of Italian rule, it was then managed by the UK forces before evolving into a associated territory of Ethiopia.

Yet in 1962 the Ethiopian emperor terminated this agreement and Eritrea became totally absorbed into the Ethiopian state.

A three-decade long civil war occurred, finishing with Ethiopia's defeat in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then endorsed by the population in a referendum in 1993.

Temporarily in the 1990s, there were good relations between the authorities in Ethiopia's capital and Eritrea's capital, but they disagreed over the exact location of their common border, causing hostilities in 1998.

Although this concluded in a ceasefire agreement in 2000, it was partially applied, and the two nations continued at odds.

This ended in 2018, when the Prime Minister made overtures to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The both leaders endorsed a announcement that the hostilities was finished – a action that earned Abiy the international recognition.

The neighboring states were then allies in Ethiopia's recent civil war in Tigray.

But ties have subsequently deteriorated anew.