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Mounting concerns exist over the chance of military engagement involving East African neighbours, the Ethiopian government and the Eritrean government, as hostile discourse has ratcheted up in the last month.

What Has Ethiopia Said?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, requests for access to the maritime outlet through Eritrea has sparked a fierce rhetorical conflict.

PM Abiy Ahmed initially stated publicly in the previous year that his country's sea access was an existential matter, remarks that Eritrean authorities dismissed.

Ties between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. After a long-standing struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a long maritime frontage, formally separated from Ethiopia in 1993, leaving it landlocked.

In 1998, a military clash erupted in which numerous people were killed.

Recent Remarks from Ethiopian Government

Abiy and military leader General Birhanu Jula have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrea's maritime facility of the port of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the frontier - and implied the wish to capture it through military means.

On 1 September, Abiy said the country's "error" of being denied passage to the sea as a due to Eritrea's separation would be "corrected tomorrow".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be restored "by force".

Eritrean Reaction to the Statements

In the face of persistent challenges from Ethiopia, Eritrea's response has been limited to short statements on online platforms from Information Minister the minister.

He has rejected Ethiopian requests for sea access labeling it "dangerous" and a "toxic agenda" of "irredentism" – a strategy of retaking lost territory.

The information ministry cautioned on mid-September that efforts to justify "obvious provocation" would have significant repercussions for Ethiopia and its neighbouring countries and is a "boundary that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Preparations on the Border

Currently, there are little evidence of large-scale army activities in the border areas between the two countries.

Nevertheless, in Ethiopia, state television has displayed completion events of thousands of cadets at various military training camps.

The director of human resources department of the military, the officer, stated recently in an conversation that the army was in a "strong stance" as "tens of thousands of recruits" were joining it, which he said was "a message to our enemies".

Past Background of the Dispute

For decades from 1890, Eritrea was administered by Italian rulers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then managed by the British administration before evolving into a federated part of Ethiopia.

But in the early 1960s the Ethiopian emperor cancelled this agreement and the region became fully incorporated into Ethiopia.

A extended civil war ensued, ending with Ethiopia's defeat in the early 1990s. Independence was then approved by Eritreans in a vote in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the authorities in Addis Ababa and Asmara, but they clashed over the exact location of their shared boundary, resulting in war in 1998.

Although this concluded in a truce in 2000, it was partially applied, and the both countries stayed at odds.

This situation improved in 2018, when Abiy made overtures to Eritrea's leader the president. The two agreed to a statement that the war was finished – a move that earned the Prime Minister the Nobel Peace Prize.

The two governments were then partners in Ethiopia's recent internal conflict in the northern region.

But ties have since broken down anew.