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Increasing worries exist over the potential of warfare between East African countries, the Ethiopian government and the Eritrean government, as confrontational discourse has ratcheted up in the past few weeks.

What Has Ethiopian Officials Declared?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, calls for entry to the sea coast through Eritrea has sparked a heated war of words.

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

Diplomatic connections between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. Following a decades-long battle for independence, Eritrea, which has a long sea border, legally broke away from Ethiopia in the early 1990s, leaving it landlocked.

In 1998, a territorial conflict started in which over a hundred thousand people were killed.

Current Comments from Ethiopia's Leadership

Prime Minister Abiy and army chief Field Marshal Birhanu Jula have openly claimed ownership of Eritrean southern port of the port of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the frontier - and hinted at the wish to capture it through military means.

In early September, Abiy said Ethiopia's "mistake" of losing access to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrea's separation would be "rectified soon".

The Ethiopian envoy to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that the port was "belonging to Ethiopia" and would be returned "by force".

Eritrean Answer to the Claims

Amid ongoing warnings from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's response has been limited to short statements on social media from Information Minister Yemane G..

Officials have denied Ethiopia's demand for maritime entry labeling it "risky" and a "negative policy" of "irredentism" – a approach of reclaiming former lands.

Eritrean authorities warned on recently that attempts to legitimise "obvious provocation" would have significant repercussions for the Ethiopian government and its regional partners and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Preparations on the Ground

So far, there are few indications of significant troop deployments in the boundary zones between the two countries.

Nevertheless, in the country, state television has displayed training completions of numerous trainees at different defense facilities.

The head of personnel division of the defense force, Lt Gen Hachalu Sheleme, stated recently in an conversation that the defense forces was in a "reliable position" as "many thousands of young people" were joining it, which he said was "a message to our adversaries".

Historical Origins of the Conflict

For over fifty years from the late 19th century, Eritrea was governed by colonial powers.

Following the end of Italian rule, it was then controlled by the British military before evolving into a integrated region of Ethiopia.

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

A thirty-year civil war ensued, concluding with military reversal in 1991. Sovereignty was then approved by voters in a vote in 1993.

For a few years in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the governments in Ethiopia's capital and Eritrea's capital, but they fell out over the exact location of their mutual frontier, resulting in war in 1998.

Although this concluded in a truce in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the two nations continued at in dispute.

This situation improved in 2018, when Abiy made approaches to Eritrean President the president. The both leaders signed a statement that the war was over – a move that earned Abiy the prestigious award.

The both administrations were then allies in the country's previous internal conflict in the northern region.

But relations have since broken down once more.