Yesterday I asked what relations between Addis Ababa and Asmara might look like if Mekelle falls. We may already be getting part of the answer. Ethiopia has decided to close its embassy in Asmara and declared ten Eritrean diplomats persona non grata, marking a serious deterioration in relations between the two governments.
Looking at the pattern we have been witnessing, the conflict is increasingly acquiring a regional dimension. The growing tension between Addis Ababa and Asmara is becoming more closely connected to the war in Tigray, although the extent and nature of that connection still need to be established clearly.
The question now is what tangible evidence the Ethiopian government can present to substantiate its claims of Eritrean involvement.
That evidence will be important for understanding both the current escalation and where relations between the two states may be heading.
The direction nevertheless deserves close attention. What began as another war centred in northern Ethiopia is increasingly intersecting with the wider EthiopiaโEritrea confrontation, raising the risk of a broader regional crisis.
Without additional weaponry, this war will become an endless bloodbath, spreading misery, suffering, and destruction. Mariupol, Bucha, Kramatorsk โ the list will be continued. Nobody will stop Russia except Ukraine with Heavy Weapons. #ArmUkraineNow
Without additional weaponry, this war will become an endless bloodbath, spreading misery, suffering, and destruction. Mariupol, Bucha, Kramatorsk โ the list will be continued. Nobody will stop Russia except Ukraine with Heavy Weapons. #ArmUkraineNow