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Increasing worries are present over the possibility of armed conflict between Horn of Africa neighbours, the Ethiopian government and the Eritrean government, as aggressive rhetoric has ratcheted up in recent weeks.

What Did Ethiopian Officials Declared?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, calls for access to the Red Sea through Eritrea has sparked a fierce war of words.

The Ethiopian leader initially stated publicly in last year that his nation's access to the sea was an crucial concern, statements that Eritrea ignored.

Diplomatic connections between the neighboring nations have often been tense. After a prolonged fight for sovereignty, Eritrea, which has a extensive maritime frontage, officially seceded from Ethiopia in the early 1990s, making it landlocked.

Five years later, a territorial conflict broke out in which more than 100,000 people lost their lives.

Latest Remarks from Ethiopian Officials

Prime Minister Abiy and military leader Field Marshal Birhanu Jula have openly claimed control of Eritrean maritime facility of the port of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the frontier - and implied the desire to seize it militarily.

On 1 September, Abiy said the country's "mistake" of losing access to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrea's separation would be "corrected soon".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, retired Gen Bacha Debele, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be returned "by force".

Eritrean Response to the Claims

In the face of continuous threats from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's response has been restricted to concise remarks on online platforms from Communications Head Yemane Gebremeskel.

He has rejected Ethiopia's demand for access to the Red Sea calling it "hazardous" and a "negative policy" of "expansionism" – a strategy of reclaiming former lands.

The information ministry warned on recently that attempts to justify "flagrant aggression" would have serious consequences for Ethiopia and its regional partners and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Preparations on the Border

So far, there are few indications of major military movements in the border areas between the two countries.

However, in Ethiopia, state television has displayed training completions of numerous trainees at various military training camps.

The leader of personnel division of the armed forces, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, commented lately in an conversation that the army was in a "strong stance" as "numerous of youths" were enlisting, which he said was "a signal to our enemies".

Past Background of the Dispute

For over fifty years from 1890, the territory was administered by colonial powers.

Following World War II, it was then controlled by the UK forces before evolving into a integrated region of Ethiopia.

However in the early 1960s the Ethiopian emperor ended this agreement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year civil war ensued, finishing with the government's loss in 1991. Sovereignty was then endorsed by voters in a vote 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 precise positioning of their common border, resulting in war in 1998.

Although this ended in a peace deal in 2000, it was partially applied, and the neighbors stayed at in dispute.

This ended in 2018, when Abiy made gestures to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The two endorsed a announcement that the hostilities was finished – a decision that gained the Prime Minister the international recognition.

The neighboring states were then cooperators in the country's previous armed struggle in Tigray.

Yet diplomatic connections have subsequently deteriorated again.