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Increasing concerns exist over the chance of military engagement involving East African neighbours, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as aggressive rhetoric has intensified in the last month.

What Did Ethiopia Stated?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, demands for access to the maritime outlet through Eritrea has provoked a heated war of words.

The Ethiopian leader first openly declared in 2023 that his government's access to the sea was an existential matter, statements that Eritrea rejected.

Ties between the both governments have regularly been difficult. After a prolonged battle for independence, the Eritrean state, which has a extensive maritime frontage, officially seceded from Ethiopia in 1993, making it without sea access.

In 1998, a border war erupted in which over a hundred thousand people died.

Current Remarks from Ethiopian Officials

Abiy and army chief General Birhanu Jula have openly claimed ownership of Eritrean coastal city of Assab – about 60km from the frontier - and hinted at the desire to capture it through military means.

Recently, Abiy said the country's "mistake" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrean independence would be "rectified tomorrow".

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

Eritrean Response to the Threats

Amid persistent challenges from Ethiopia, Eritrea's reaction has been limited to brief comments on social media from Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel.

The minister has dismissed Ethiopian requests for maritime entry calling it "dangerous" and a "harmful plan" of "territorial claims" – a strategy of reclaiming lost territory.

The information ministry alerted on 16 September that moves to justify "obvious provocation" would have significant repercussions for the Ethiopian government and its regional partners and is a "boundary that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Military Movements on the Border

So far, there are few indications of significant troop deployments in the border areas between the both nations.

Nonetheless, in the country, state television has broadcast graduation ceremonies of thousands of cadets at multiple army bases.

The head of staff section of the armed forces, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, recently said in an discussion that the army was in a "strong stance" as "many thousands of young people" were joining it, which he said was "a message to our enemies".

Past Background of the Tension

For over fifty years from the late 19th century, the territory was ruled by Italian colonisers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the British administration before becoming a associated territory of the Ethiopian empire.

But in 1962 the ruler terminated this agreement and the region became fully incorporated into Ethiopia.

A three-decade long armed struggle occurred, ending with Ethiopia's defeat in the early 1990s. Sovereignty was then approved by voters in a vote in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the authorities in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they disagreed over the precise positioning of their mutual frontier, resulting in hostilities in 1998.

Even though this ended in a truce in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the two nations stayed at odds.

This changed in 2018, when the Prime Minister made gestures to Eritrea's leader Isaias Afwerki. The both leaders endorsed a statement that the conflict was over – a decision that earned Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize.

The both administrations were then allies in the country's recent civil war in Tigray.

However diplomatic connections have since broken down once more.