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Growing concerns are present over the potential of warfare between East African countries, Ethiopia and the Eritrean government, as confrontational language has ratcheted up in the past few weeks.

What Did Ethiopia Said?

Landlocked Ethiopia's demands for entry to the Red Sea through Eritrea has sparked a intense war of words.

Ethiopian Prime Minister previously announced in last year that his nation's maritime access was an existential matter, remarks that Eritrean authorities ignored.

Diplomatic connections between the two countries have regularly been difficult. After a decades-long battle for independence, Eritrea, which has a extensive sea border, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in 1993, leaving it landlocked.

Five years later, a military clash started in which numerous people lost their lives.

Latest Comments from Ethiopia's Government

Abiy and army chief General Birhanu Jula have openly claimed sovereignty of Eritrea's southern port of the port of Assab – about 60km from the border - and hinted at the desire to seize it militarily.

On 1 September, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia's "blunder" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrean independence would be "rectified in the future".

The Ethiopian envoy to neighboring Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that Assab was "belonging to Ethiopia" and would be restored "using武力".

Eritrea's Answer to the Threats

Amid ongoing challenges from Ethiopian officials, Asmara's position has been confined to concise remarks on online platforms from Information Minister the minister.

Officials have denied Ethiopia's demand for sea access describing it as "risky" and a "harmful plan" of "territorial claims" – a policy of reclaiming former lands.

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

Military Activities on the Border

There have been no reports of large-scale army activities in the boundary zones between the both nations.

Nevertheless, in the country, national TV has broadcast completion events of numerous trainees at various military training camps.

The leader of personnel division of the armed forces, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, recently said in an discussion that the defense forces was in a "secure situation" as "tens of thousands of young people" were enlisting, which he said was "a warning to our adversaries".

Previous Roots of the Tension

For over fifty years from the late 19th century, Eritrea was administered by Italian rulers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the British administration before turning into a integrated region of the Ethiopian empire.

However in 1962 the Ethiopian emperor terminated this arrangement and Eritrea became totally absorbed into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year internal conflict followed, finishing with Ethiopia's defeat in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then confirmed by voters in a referendum in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the leadership in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they disagreed over the exact location of their mutual frontier, resulting in war in 1998.

Though this ended in a peace deal in 2000, it was partially applied, and the neighbors remained at odds.

This ended in 2018, when the Prime Minister made gestures to Eritrea's leader the president. The two signed a declaration that the conflict was concluded – a move that gained the Prime Minister the prestigious award.

The neighboring states were then allies in the country's recent civil war in the northern region.

But ties have subsequently deteriorated again.