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Mounting apprehensions have emerged over the possibility of warfare among East African neighbours, the Ethiopian government and the Eritrean government, as hostile discourse has intensified in the last month.

What Has Ethiopian Officials Said?

Landlocked Ethiopia's demands for access to the Red Sea through Eritrean territory has triggered a heated verbal exchange.

PM Abiy Ahmed initially stated publicly in last year that his country's maritime access was an vital issue, comments that Eritrean authorities rejected.

Ties between the both governments have frequently been strained. Following a decades-long battle for independence, the Eritrean state, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) Red Sea coastline, legally broke away from Ethiopia in 1993, making it cut off from the sea.

In 1998, a territorial conflict erupted in which more than 100,000 people were killed.

Recent Comments from Ethiopia's Officials

Prime Minister Abiy and military leader the army commander have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrean coastal city of Assab – some 60 km from the frontier - and hinted at the intention to capture it through military means.

On 1 September, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia's "mistake" of losing access to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrean independence would be "corrected tomorrow".

Ethiopia's ambassador to neighboring Kenya, former General Bacha Debele, said that Assab was "Ethiopia's wealth" and would be restored "through military action".

Eritrean Answer to the Threats

In the face of ongoing threats from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's response has been restricted to short statements on online platforms from Communications Head Yemane G..

He has rejected Ethiopia's push for maritime entry labeling it "risky" and a "negative policy" of "irredentism" – a strategy of retaking former lands.

The information ministry warned on mid-September that moves to legitimise "obvious provocation" would have serious consequences for the Ethiopian government and its neighbors and is a "limit that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Defense Preparations on the Ground

There have been no reports of significant troop deployments in the border areas between the two countries.

Nonetheless, in Ethiopia, government media has shown training completions of thousands of cadets at multiple army bases.

The director of human resources department of the military, General Hachalu, stated recently in an interview that the defense forces was in a "strong stance" as "tens of thousands of recruits" were enlisting, which he said was "a warning to our adversaries".

Past Roots of the Tension

For more than half a century from 1890, Eritrea was ruled by Italian rulers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the British administration before evolving into a federated part of Ethiopia.

But in 1962 the ruler ended this arrangement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into Ethiopia.

A extended civil war occurred, concluding with military reversal in the early 1990s. Sovereignty was then approved by Eritreans in a plebiscite in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were positive ties between the authorities in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they disagreed over the specific demarcation of their common border, leading to war in 1998.

Though this finished in a peace deal in 2000, it was incompletely executed, and the two nations stayed at odds.

This ended in 2018, when Abiy made overtures to Eritrean President President Isaias. The both leaders agreed to a declaration that the hostilities was concluded – a action that gained the Prime Minister the Nobel Peace Prize.

The two governments were then allies in Ethiopia's previous civil war in Tigray.

However diplomatic connections have subsequently deteriorated once more.