Eritrea has rejected accusations by neighbouring Ethiopia of violating its territorial integrity and occupying border areas.
On Sunday, Addis Ababa dispatched a letter to Asmara, demanding the authorities to immediately withdraw their troops from the northeastern part of Ethiopia and prepare for talks on future relations.
In a brief statement issued on Monday, Eritrean Ministry of Information rejected the allegation of having troops on the ground inside Ethiopia, dismissing Addis Ababa’s claims as fabricated.
“The patently false and fabricated accusation against Eritrea issued by Ethiopia’s Foreign Minister yesterday is astounding in its tone and substance, underlying motivation, and overarching objective” the statement said.
Asmara said it ”has no appetite for, or desire to, engage in meaningless acrimony to add fuel and exacerbate the situation.”
Eritrea harbours misgivings of its own about landlocked Ethiopia’s ”peculiar” maritime ambitions which include unfettered access to the port of Assab for trading amd military purposes on the Red Sea coast.
Ethiopia and Eritrea were part of a federation before the latter seceded in the early 1990s after a war of independence lasting thirty years.
The two countries fought a devastating border war from 1998 to 2000 that claimed tens of thousands of lives.
They were briefly allies against rebels from Ethiopia’s Tigray region during the 2020-2022 conflict but relations soured over a subsequent peace accord, from which Eritrea felt excluded and betrayed.
“Sadly, it constitutes yet another deplorable act in a pattern and spiral of hostile campaigns against Eritrea for more than two years now,” the statement added.
MG/as/APA