Eritrea: Minister Osman Saleh gave briefing to Diplomatic community

Foreign Minister Osman Saleh gave a briefing yesterday morning, at the Foreign Ministry HQ in Asmara, to Resident Ambassadors and Members of the Diplomatic Corps and Heads of UN Agencies accredited to the country, on false accusations regarding:  i) Eritrea’s presumptive preparations for war against Ethiopia; ii) the Pretoria Agreement; and, iii) Ethiopia’s obsession for an outlet to the sea and subsequent diplomatic campaigns and attendant sabre-rattling.

In his extensive briefing, FM Osman underlined:

* The EDF has been redeployed to Eritrea’s internationally recognized borders right after the end of the conflict in November 2022.  “Anyone that claims or suggests that the Eritrean Defense Forces are still in Ethiopian territory is doing so to scapegoat Eritrea for Ethiopia’s internal problems”.

* These accusations are peddled by former TPLF members who had rejected from the outset, and continue to reject, the final and binding Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) decision, and who had worked for regime change in Eritrea “to no avail”.

* The Government of Eritrea views the Pretoria Agreement as an internal affair of Ethiopia and has no desire to intervene in that process.

*The Government of Eritrea has no role whatsoever in the ongoing internal conflict between the Interim Tigray Administration and the TPLF; it categorically rejects any accusations or allegations that insinuate otherwise.

* Eritrea is perplexed by Ethiopia’s misguided and outdated ambitions for maritime access and naval base “through diplomacy or military force”.  In this respect, Eritrea urges the international community and its relevant bodies to put pressure on Ethiopia to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of its neighbours.

Distributed by APO Group on behalf of Ministry of Information, Eritrea.