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Growing worries are present over the possibility of warfare between East African countries, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as aggressive discourse has escalated in the past few weeks.

What Did Ethiopia Stated?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, demands for passage to the Red Sea through Eritrean territory has triggered a fierce war of words.

PM Abiy Ahmed previously announced in last year that his nation's maritime access was an crucial concern, comments that Eritrea ignored.

Ties between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. After a decades-long struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a long Red Sea coastline, legally broke away from Ethiopian rule in 1993, making it without sea access.

Subsequently, a border war erupted in which numerous people lost their lives.

Recent Remarks from Ethiopian Officials

Abiy and military leader the army commander have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrean maritime facility of the port of Assab – about 60km from the frontier - and suggested the intention to capture it through military means.

On 1 September, the Prime Minister said the country's "error" of being denied passage to the sea as a due to Eritrea's separation would be "addressed soon".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that the port was "Ethiopia's wealth" and would be restored "through military action".

Eritrean Answer to the Threats

In the face of continuous warnings from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's reaction has been restricted to concise remarks on social media from Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel.

Officials have denied Ethiopian requests for sea access calling it "hazardous" and a "negative policy" of "irredentism" – a policy of claiming back former lands.

The information ministry warned on mid-September that efforts to justify "blatant hostility" would have significant repercussions for Ethiopia and its regional partners and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Security Activities on the Border

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

However, in the country, national TV has shown completion events of many recruits at multiple army bases.

The director of personnel division of the military, the officer, stated recently in an discussion that the military was in a "reliable position" as "numerous of youths" were joining it, which he said was "a warning to our adversaries".

Past Origins of the Dispute

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

Following Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the UK forces before evolving into a federated part of Ethiopia.

But in 1962 Emperor Haile Selassie I cancelled this system and Eritrea became completely integrated into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year armed struggle ensued, concluding with military reversal in 1991. Independence was then confirmed by voters in a vote in 1993.

Temporarily in the 1990s, there were good relations between the authorities in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they fell out over the precise positioning of their common border, leading to war in 1998.

Though this concluded in a truce in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the two nations stayed at in dispute.

This ended in 2018, when the Prime Minister made gestures to Eritrean President the president. The two agreed to a declaration that the hostilities was finished – a decision that gained the Prime Minister the Nobel Peace Prize.

The neighboring states were then partners in the country's 2020-2022 internal conflict in the northern region.

Yet diplomatic connections have since broken down again.