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Increasing apprehensions have emerged about the chance of military engagement between Horn of Africa neighbours, the Ethiopian government and Eritrea, as aggressive language has intensified in recent weeks.

What Did Ethiopian Officials Stated?

Landlocked Ethiopia's demands for entry to the sea coast through Eritrea has triggered a fierce verbal exchange.

The Ethiopian leader first openly declared in last year that his country's sea access was an existential matter, statements that Eritrean authorities rejected.

Relations between the both governments have often been tense. After a prolonged battle for independence, Eritrea, which has a long maritime frontage, legally broke away from Ethiopian rule in 1993, rendering it without sea access.

Subsequently, a border war started in which more than 100,000 people were killed.

Recent Remarks from Ethiopia's Government

Abiy and military leader General Birhanu Jula have directly stated sovereignty of Eritrean maritime facility of Assab – some 60 km from the boundary - and hinted at the desire to capture it through military means.

Recently, the Prime Minister said Ethiopia's "blunder" of being denied passage to the Red Sea as a because of Eritrea's separation would be "addressed soon".

The Ethiopian envoy to Kenya, retired Gen Bacha Debele, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be given back "through military action".

Eritrean Answer to the Threats

Amid persistent warnings from Ethiopian officials, Asmara's position has been confined to concise remarks on X from Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel.

The minister has dismissed Ethiopian requests for access to the Red Sea labeling it "risky" and a "toxic agenda" of "expansionism" – a policy of claiming back lost territory.

Government spokespeople warned on recently that attempts to justify "obvious provocation" would have major implications for Ethiopia and its neighbors and is a "boundary that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Security Activities on the Ground

So far, there are few indications of large-scale army activities in the border areas between the two countries.

However, in Ethiopia, state television has displayed training completions of many recruits at different defense facilities.

The director of staff section of the armed forces, General Hachalu, recently said in an interview that the defense forces was in a "secure situation" as "numerous of youths" were joining it, which he said was "a message to our opponents".

Historical Roots of the Conflict

For more than half a century from 1890, the territory was administered by Italian rulers.

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

But in the early 1960s the ruler terminated this system and Eritrea became completely integrated into Ethiopia.

A extended civil war occurred, ending with the government's loss in 1991. Autonomy was then endorsed by voters in a referendum in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were friendly connections between the authorities in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they clashed over the exact location of their common border, causing hostilities in 1998.

Even though this concluded in a peace deal in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the two nations continued at odds.

This changed in 2018, when the Prime Minister made approaches to Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki. The two endorsed a declaration that the hostilities was over – a decision that earned the Prime Minister the prestigious award.

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

But relations have subsequently deteriorated anew.