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Increasing worries have emerged regarding the chance of armed conflict between Horn of Africa neighbours, Ethiopia and the Eritrean government, as confrontational language has intensified in the last month.

What Has Ethiopia Declared?

Ethiopia's, being landlocked, requests for access to the sea coast through Eritrea has triggered a fierce war of words.

The Ethiopian leader initially stated publicly in last year that his country's maritime access was an crucial concern, statements that Eritrean authorities ignored.

Diplomatic connections between the neighboring nations have frequently been strained. After a decades-long struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a 1,350km (840-mile) maritime frontage, formally separated from Ethiopia in 1993, leaving it cut off from the sea.

Five years later, a military clash erupted in which over a hundred thousand people died.

Latest Remarks from Ethiopian Leadership

Prime Minister Abiy and army chief the army commander have publicly asserted control of Eritrean maritime facility of the port of Assab – approximately 60 kilometers from the frontier - and suggested the desire to seize it militarily.

In early September, Abiy said the country's "error" of losing entry to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrean independence would be "rectified soon".

Ethiopia's ambassador to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that Assab was "Ethiopian property" and would be given back "through military action".

Eritrea's Answer to the Claims

In the face of continuous threats from Ethiopian officials, Eritrea's response has been confined to concise remarks on online platforms from Communications Head the minister.

Officials have denied Ethiopian requests for access to the Red Sea labeling it "hazardous" and a "harmful plan" of "territorial claims" – a strategy of reclaiming former lands.

The information ministry warned on recently that efforts to legitimise "obvious provocation" would have major implications for the Ethiopian government and its regional partners and is a "redline that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Military Preparations on the Region

Currently, there are little evidence of major military movements in the frontier regions between the two countries.

However, in Ethiopia, national TV has shown completion events of numerous trainees at different defense facilities.

The head of staff section of the defense force, General Hachalu, recently said in an interview that the army was in a "strong stance" as "tens of thousands of recruits" were enlisting, which he said was "a warning to our adversaries".

Historical Background of the Tension

For more than half a century from the late 19th century, the territory was ruled by colonial powers.

Following World War II, it was then administered by the UK forces before becoming a integrated region of the Ethiopian empire.

But in 1962 the ruler cancelled this arrangement and the region became totally absorbed into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year civil war ensued, concluding with Ethiopia's defeat in 1991. Independence was then endorsed by the population in a referendum in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were good relations between the leadership in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they fell out over the specific demarcation of their common border, leading to war in 1998.

Though this concluded in a truce in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the both countries stayed at loggerheads.

This changed in 2018, when the Prime Minister made overtures to Eritrean President the president. The two agreed to a statement that the war was concluded – a move that earned Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize.

The both administrations were then allies in Ethiopia's previous civil war in Tigray.

Yet diplomatic connections have later worsened again.