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Increasing worries exist regarding the possibility of warfare between East African neighbours, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as confrontational discourse has escalated in the past few weeks.

What Did Ethiopian Officials Stated?

Landlocked Ethiopia's calls for entry to the Red Sea through Eritrean territory has provoked a fierce verbal exchange.

Ethiopian Prime Minister previously announced in last year that his country's access to the sea was an existential matter, statements that Eritrean authorities dismissed.

Diplomatic connections between the neighboring nations have regularly been difficult. Following a prolonged battle for independence, the Eritrean state, which has a long maritime frontage, legally broke away from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, making it without sea access.

Subsequently, a territorial conflict erupted in which more than 100,000 people died.

Current Statements from Ethiopia's Leadership

Prime Minister Abiy and army chief the army commander have openly claimed control of Eritrea's coastal city of the port of Assab – about 60km from the boundary - and suggested the desire to capture it through military means.

On 1 September, Abiy said the country's "error" of losing access to the Red Sea as a because of Eritrea's separation would be "rectified tomorrow".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that the port was "Ethiopian property" and would be returned "using武力".

Eritrea's Reaction to the Statements

Amid persistent warnings from Ethiopian officials, Asmara's position has been limited to short statements on online platforms from Information Minister the minister.

Officials have denied Ethiopian requests for sea access labeling it "hazardous" and a "toxic agenda" of "irredentism" – a policy of claiming back former lands.

The information ministry warned on 16 September that efforts to legitimise "blatant hostility" would have serious consequences for Ethiopia and its neighbouring countries and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Military Preparations on the Border

Currently, there are no reports of significant troop deployments in the border areas between the both nations.

However, in Ethiopia, state television has shown completion events of numerous trainees at various military training camps.

The director of staff section of the military, the officer, recently said in an interview that the defense forces was in a "strong stance" as "tens of thousands of recruits" were entering service, which he said was "a message to our adversaries".

Past Background of the Conflict

For over fifty years from 1890, Eritrea was ruled by Italian rulers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then managed by the British military before becoming a integrated region of the Ethiopian empire.

However in the early 1960s Emperor Haile Selassie I ended this agreement and the region became fully incorporated into the Ethiopian state.

A extended civil war followed, finishing with Ethiopia's defeat in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then approved by Eritreans in a vote in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the leadership in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they disagreed over the exact location of their common border, resulting in hostilities in 1998.

Although this ended in a truce in 2000, it was partially applied, and the both countries remained at odds.

This changed in 2018, when the Prime Minister made approaches to Eritrea's leader Isaias Afwerki. The both leaders endorsed a statement that the conflict was over – a move that earned Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize.

The neighboring states were then cooperators in Ethiopia's 2020-2022 civil war in Tigray.

Yet ties have subsequently deteriorated anew.