'But what of the Charter itself? It is eighty-one years old this June, and counting. What is its fate?
I do not believe its principles have aged. Sovereign equality, self-determination, and the restraint of force are as sound now as in 1945. What has aged, is the machinery. The United Nations is the agency charged with upholding the Charter, and the agency has much reform to do.'
Read âA Single Door to Freedom: Eritrea and the UN Charter at Eighty-Oneâ by Munir O. on Medium: https://t.co/rKdkXRv2Ej
By invoking Chapter VII (7) of the UN Charter, Eritrea is asking the Security Council to move beyond expressions of concern and consider enforceable measures against Ethiopia.
Those could include sanctions or an arms embargo and, at the strongest end, authorization of military force.
But the request itself triggers none of these, as the Council must assess the situation and decide whether to act. It is an appeal for international deterrence.
Of course, the necessary self defense precautions are also put in place. As it goes,
"ááĄáá áááŁáľ á¤ááľáŤ á¨áŁâáᥠáĽá°áá áĽááá áá°áá˝á¨âáŠá˘ ááľááᎠá¨áŁ ááááĄ! áŁááŁáá° ááĽá˘"
For those thinking Eritrea didnât raise the issue before: Among other actions, it briefed UN representatives and diplomats in March 2025 about Ethiopiaâs threats to its sovereignty. The October 2026 Security Council appeal is an escalation, not its first warning.
#Eritrea: Foreign Minister Osman Saleh Sends Letter to the UN Security Council
Ref-OM/261/26
October 10, 2026
Excellency,
In its communications to the UN Security Council yesterday, 9 October 2026, Ethiopiaâs Foreign Ministry has formally informed the UN Security Council that it is âtaking measuresâ to implement the war of aggression that it has declared against Eritrea for three-years now.
Ethiopiaâs deceitful attempts to rationalize its brazen acts of war against a sovereign UN member State in âself-defenseâ terms is hollow in substance and constitutes an insult to the intelligence of the international community.
As it will be recalled, Eritrea had repeatedly brought to the attention of the international community, Ethiopiaâs dogged pursuit of an unprovoked agenda of war against Eritrea to forcefully acquire âsovereign access to the seaâ in flagrant breach of Eritreaâs sovereignty and territorial integrity.
In this respect, the litany of Ethiopiaâs unlawful threats and war plans against Eritrea, which violate foundational principles and pillars of the UN Charter, and that even denigrate and deny Eritreaâs inviolable sovereignty as well as hard-won independence, are on public record.
Ethiopiaâs provocative acts of war and regional destabilization had in fact elicited the UNSG and many UN member States to issue coordinated Statements on the 25thAnniversary of the Algiers Agreement in December last year that underlined the urgency and imperative of respecting Eritreaâs sovereignty and territorial integrity. But Ethiopia did not only fail to heed these warning; it has gone further to incorporate and operationalize its long-planned invasion of Eritrea as part and parcel of the huge offensive it has unleashed in northern Ethiopia.
Indeed, Ethiopiaâs Deputy Chief of Staff, General Abebaw Tadesse, bluntly stated on 27 September last month that the âultimate objective of the war was to invade Assab, that Mekelle, the capital city of the Tigray Administrative Region, was a mere stop-over towards the invasion of Eritreaâ.
In the event, Eritrea requests the UN Security Council to forcefully condemn Ethiopiaâs deplorable declaration of war against Eritrea, which will inculcate huge devastation to the peoples of both countries and destabilize the whole region, and take the requisite deterrent measures against it in accordance with Chapter VII of the UN Charter.
Osman Saleh
Minister of Foreign Affairs
The State of Eritrea
H.E. Ambassador Aglaia Balta
Permanent Representative of Greece to the United Nations
New York
A report of an alleged incursion becomes the premise for a report of an alleged retreat, and that retreat then appears as settled background in the next story. And all of it based on witnesses. @Reuters đ¤Śđžââď¸
I have a favourite quote I always go by,
"In the event, the GoE repeatedly reiterates that it will not, as ever, be drawn into such alleys and platforms. The GOE further urges all concerned not to be provoked by these events."
"Eritrea requests the UN Security Council to forcefully condemn Ethiopiaâs deplorable declaration of war against Eritrea..."
While Ethiopia normalises the language of aggression/violence/force, Eritrea demonstrates restraint by calling for UN action to prevent war.
See the difference?
#Eritrea: Foreign Minister Osman Saleh Sends Letter to the UN Security Council;
10 October 2026
1. In its communications to the UN Security Council yesterday, Ethiopiaâs Foreign Ministry has formally informed the UN Security Council that it is âtaking measuresâ to implement the war of aggression that it has declared against Eritrea for three-years now.
2. Ethiopiaâs deceitful attempts to rationalize its brazen acts of war against a sovereign UN member State in âself-defenseâ terms is hollow in substance and constitutes an insult to the intelligence of the international community.
3. Ethiopiaâs provocative acts of war and regional destabilization had in fact elicited the UNSG and many UN member States to issue coordinated Statements on the 25thAnniversary of the Algiers Agreement in December last year that underlined the urgency and imperative of respecting Eritreaâs sovereignty and territorial integrity.
4. But Ethiopia did not only fail to heed these warnings; it has gone further to incorporate and operationalize its long-planned invasion of Eritrea as part and parcel of the huge offensive it has unleashed in northern Ethiopia.
5. In the event, Eritrea requests the UN Security Council to forcefully condemn Ethiopiaâs deplorable declaration of war against Eritrea, which will inculcate huge devastation to the peoples of both countries and destabilize the whole region, and take the requisite deterrent measures against it in accordance with Chapter VII of the UN Charter.
https://t.co/PG0HqdUHaw
đŞđšđŞđˇ Ethiopia told the UN Security Council it has no option but to defend itself against what it called an "all out invasion" by Eritrea, its first official statement on reported Eritrean incursions this week, according to Reuters.
đšIn a letter, Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos said Eritrean forces, "including mechanized units," had pushed up to 60 km (37 miles) into northern Ethiopia. He claimed the incursions were a "matter of public record" and "a blatant act of aggression that engages Ethiopia's inherent right to self-defense."
đšIndependent assessments do not support that picture. The Critical Threats Project said Friday that reported Eritrean incursions remain unconfirmed and that Eritrea likely sent only limited reinforcements to back the TPLF. It found no large-scale buildup on the border in satellite imagery.
đšAFP reported the same day that Eritrean forces in the Tigrayan town of Adigrat had already pulled back north.
đšEritreaâs information minister, Yemane Gebremeskel, called Ethiopia's accusations "audacity and duplicity in their most extreme forms" in a post on X on Friday, arguing that Ethiopia has been waging "an unprovoked war of aggression against Eritrea for more than three years." He said Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed effectively declared war in October 2023, when he told parliament Ethiopia would gain "sovereign access to the sea, through negotiations if possible and by force if necessary."
đšYemane said Abiy has cited Israel's annexation of the Golan Heights as a precedent for Eritrea's port of Assab, and that Ethiopia's deputy army chief declared on September 27, "Mekelle is a mere stop-over, our ultimate destination is Assab."
đšEthiopia accuses Eritrea of backing a rebel alliance that has been fighting federal troops in Tigray, Amhara and Afar since September 23. Eritrea, Egypt and Sudan deny supporting it.
"International law, ripped and ravaged though it may be, is of course on Eritreaâs side."
"The real issue, however, which is plain for everyone to see and repeated in headline after headline, is Ethiopiaâs determination to reclaim what Prime Minister Abiy calls its historic right to the Red Sea."
#Ethiopia and #Eritrea on the Brink . . . Things didn't have to come to this point. If the US didn't tell TPLF to go to war in 2020, it could easily have told them not to. https://t.co/xkHssIVUja
#Eritrea: FCDO now advises against all but essential travel to Eritrea. FCDO continues to advise against all travel to within 25km of all of Eritreaâs land borders: https://t.co/7ALg8tt6Po
Channel 4 admits its Eritrea report used footage that was not current. This piece is being taken down. Credit for the correction, but a false first impression travels faster than any retraction. Verification is the minimum standard of fair reporting. #Eritrea
@lindseyhilsum@Channel4News Accuracy is not a favour owed to Eritrea. It is the minimum condition of fair reporting.
The correction deserves credit. It should also lead to a wider audit of the sourcing behind the coverage, & to standard of verification that applies equally to every state, large or small.
@fanatelevision Thatâs a false equivalence. You canât compare apples and oranges. The Abbay is a transboundary river shared by several states, while the Red Sea is not a river that Ethiopia co-owns.
@gual_erey_ Exactly. Eritrea is becoming the convenient scapegoat for Ethiopiaâs internal crises. Blaming Asmara shifts attention away from domestic failures, unites people behind an external enemy and helps build a narrative for confrontation. Who benefits from this story?