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Increasing concerns are present regarding the chance of military engagement involving Horn of Africa countries, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as confrontational discourse has ratcheted up in the past few weeks.

What Has Ethiopia Stated?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, calls for entry to the sea coast through Eritrea has provoked a heated verbal exchange.

PM Abiy Ahmed first openly declared in the previous year that his nation's sea access was an existential matter, comments that Eritrea rejected.

Relations between the two countries have frequently been strained. After a long-standing fight for sovereignty, Eritrea, which has a extensive sea border, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in 1993, leaving it landlocked.

In 1998, a border war broke out in which over a hundred thousand people lost their lives.

Recent Statements from Ethiopia's Government

Prime Minister Abiy and military leader the army commander have openly claimed sovereignty of Eritrean maritime facility of Assab – about 60km from the border - and suggested the intention to take it by force.

Recently, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia's "error" of losing entry to the sea as a because of Eritrea's separation would be "addressed soon".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that Assab was "Ethiopia's wealth" and would be given back "using武力".

Eritrean Answer to the Claims

Despite persistent challenges from Ethiopia, Eritrea's response has been confined to concise remarks on social media from Communications Head Yemane Gebremeskel.

Officials have denied Ethiopia's push for access to the Red Sea calling it "dangerous" and a "negative policy" of "expansionism" – a approach of reclaiming former lands.

Government spokespeople warned on 16 September that efforts to validate "obvious provocation" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its neighbouring countries and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Movements on the Region

So far, there are little evidence of large-scale army activities in the frontier regions between the neighboring states.

Nonetheless, in the country, government media has displayed completion events of numerous trainees at different defense facilities.

The leader of personnel division of the military, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, recently said in an conversation that the military was in a "reliable position" as "numerous of young people" were joining it, which he said was "a signal to our enemies".

Historical Roots of the Dispute

For more than half a century from 1890, the territory was administered by Italian colonisers.

Following World War II, it was then managed by the UK forces before becoming a federated part of Ethiopia.

But in 1962 Emperor Haile Selassie I terminated this arrangement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into the Ethiopian state.

A thirty-year armed struggle ensued, ending with military reversal in the early 1990s. Independence was then confirmed by voters in a plebiscite in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the leadership in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they clashed over the precise positioning of their mutual frontier, resulting in war in 1998.

Though this ended in a peace deal in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the two nations stayed at odds.

This situation improved in 2018, when Abiy made overtures to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The two signed a declaration that the conflict was concluded – a action that won the Prime Minister the prestigious award.

The two governments were then cooperators in Ethiopia's recent civil war in the northern region.

But relations have subsequently deteriorated anew.