Eritrea severed diplomatic relations with Ethiopia after Addis Ababa ordered its embassy in Asmara closed and gave 10 Eritrean diplomats 48 hours to leave. The neighbours exchanged security accusations as fighting intensified in northern Ethiopia. The break ends another phase of relations that had improved in 2018 after years of border conflict.
Eritrea announced a complete break in diplomatic relations with Ethiopia on October 1. Ethiopia had ordered its embassy in Asmara, Eritrea’s capital, closed and declared 10 Eritrean diplomats in Addis Ababa unwelcome. The diplomats, including the chargé d’affaires and officials accredited to the African Union, were given 48 hours to leave. Eritrea’s foreign ministry presented the rupture as its response to those measures.[1], [2]
Addis Ababa accused Eritrea of hostile activity and its diplomats of threatening national security. Asmara rejected the allegations and accused Ethiopia of hosting, training and arming Eritrean opposition groups. It also portrayed Ethiopia’s pursuit of sovereign sea access as a threat to Eritrean ports and coastal territory. These remain the governments’ competing allegations. Landlocked Ethiopia’s wish for direct sea access has become a recurring source of tension.[1]
The neighbours fought a border war from 1998 to 2000 before normalising relations in 2018 under Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. Eritrean forces later fought alongside Ethiopia’s government during the 2020–2022 Tigray war. Eritrea did not join the Pretoria agreement ending that conflict. With renewed fighting in northern Ethiopia, the new decisions now change embassy operations and diplomatic representation between the two countries.[1]
