Earlier today, Ethiopia closed the Eritrean embassy in the country and declared most Eritrean diplomats 'persona non-grata', giving them 72 hours to leave the country.
Tensions have been rising between both neighbors as rumors spread that Eritrean units have entered Ethiopian territory from the north and are helping rebel factions, especially the Afar units, in fighting the ELNF.
Eritrea's full statement reads as follows:
The Ethiopian Government issued a Press Statement today announcing the closure of the Eritrean Embassy to Ethiopia as well as declaring ten Eritrean Diplomats, including the Charge d ’Affairs and other Eritrean Diplomats accredited to the African Union as “persona non grata”.
To justify these unwarranted acts of hostility, the Ethiopian Government has turned the tables to accuse Eritrea for “direct and indirect acts of hostility and belligerence against Ethiopia”.
This is astounding indeed.
In reality, it is Ethiopia which has been pursuing an agenda of incessant hostility – in effect, a publicly pronounced declaration of war – against Eritrea for three years in pursuit of “the imperative of acquiring sovereign access to the sea” through the invasion of sovereign Eritrean ports and coastal areas.
In parallel with these aggressive intentions, Ethiopia has gone further to host, train, and provide arms, to an assortment of what it calls “Eritrean armed opposition groups” to stoke internal conflict for “regime change” in Eritrea.
Throughout these trying times, Eritrea has displayed patience and restraint in the hope of averting a dangerous escalation.
In the current circumstances, however, Eritrea has no option but to reciprocate in kind and severe all diplomatic ties with Ethiopia with all the negative corollaries that this entails.
@GeoPWatch