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Increasing apprehensions have emerged over the possibility of warfare among East African neighbours, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as aggressive language has escalated in recent weeks.

What Has Ethiopian Officials Said?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, requests for access to the maritime outlet through Eritrean territory has provoked a intense verbal exchange.

Ethiopian Prime Minister previously announced in the previous year that his government's sea access was an vital issue, remarks that Eritrea dismissed.

Ties between the two countries have often been tense. Following a decades-long battle for independence, the Eritrean state, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) sea border, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, leaving it landlocked.

Subsequently, a border war broke out in which more than 100,000 people lost their lives.

Current Comments from Ethiopian Leadership

Prime Minister Abiy and army chief General Birhanu Jula have publicly asserted ownership of Eritrean maritime facility of Assab – about 60km from the frontier - and suggested the desire to capture it through military means.

On 1 September, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia's "blunder" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrea secession would be "corrected in the future".

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

Eritrean Response to the Statements

In the face of continuous threats from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's response has been confined to short statements on social media from Information Minister Yemane G..

He has rejected Ethiopia's demand for sea access labeling it "risky" and a "toxic agenda" of "territorial claims" – a strategy of retaking lost territory.

The information ministry cautioned on mid-September that efforts to validate "flagrant aggression" would have significant repercussions for the Ethiopian government and its regional partners and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Military Activities on the Border

So far, there are no reports of significant troop deployments in the boundary zones between the two countries.

Nevertheless, in the country, government media has broadcast training completions of thousands of cadets at different defense facilities.

The head of personnel division of the defense force, the officer, recently said in an interview that the defense forces was in a "strong stance" as "numerous of recruits" were enlisting, which he said was "a message to our enemies".

Historical Background of the Dispute

For decades from 1890, the territory was governed by Italian colonisers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the UK forces before evolving into a associated territory of the Ethiopian empire.

But in the early 1960s the Ethiopian emperor terminated this arrangement and the region became fully incorporated into the Ethiopian state.

A thirty-year internal conflict ensued, concluding with Ethiopia's defeat in the early 1990s. Independence was then confirmed by Eritreans in a vote in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the authorities in Ethiopia's capital and Eritrea's capital, but they clashed over the exact location of their shared boundary, leading to war in 1998.

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

This situation improved in 2018, when the Prime Minister made overtures to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The two endorsed a announcement that the conflict was over – a move that earned the Prime Minister the Nobel Peace Prize.

The two governments were then partners in Ethiopia's 2020-2022 civil war in the northern region.

Yet ties have later worsened again.