The portfolio referred to a statement from the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry that announced the closure of the diplomatic headquarters in Asmara in Addis Ababa and gave 48 hours to 10 Eritrean diplomats, including the chargé d’affaires and staff accredited to the African Union, to leave the country.

According to the text, “in order to justify these unjustified acts of hostility, the Government of Ethiopia has reversed the situation by accusing Eritrea of carrying out direct and indirect acts of hostility and belligerence against Ethiopia.

This is truly astonishing. According to the source, Addis Ababa has been pursuing an agenda of relentless hostility – effectively a declaration of public war – against Eritrea for three years, in order to meet “the imperative of obtaining sovereign access to the sea” by invading sovereign ports and coastal areas.

The text also mentioned that Ethiopia went further by hosting, training and arming various groups it calls “Eritrean armed opposition groups”, in order to fuel internal conflict for a “regime change” in the country.

He stressed that, in these difficult times, Eritrea showed patience and restraint in the hope of avoiding a dangerous escalation.

However, the statement concluded, given current circumstances, he has no other choice but to respond in the same way and break all diplomatic ties with Ethiopia, with all the negative consequences that this entails.

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