Ethiopia and Eritrea have traded accusations of military aggression and support for armed groups, deepening a diplomatic crisis between the two neighbouring countries.

In a letter to the United Nations Security Council, Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos accused Eritrea of an all-out invasion of parts of northern Ethiopia and demanded the withdrawal of Eritrean troops.

Timothewos said Eritrean forces had advanced as far as 60 kilometres into Ethiopia’s Tigray region. Describing the alleged incursion as “a matter of public record”, he called it “a blatant act of aggression that engages Ethiopia’s inherent right to self-defence”.

Eritrea rejected the accusations. Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel said Ethiopia had instead pursued what he described as “an unprovoked war of aggression against Eritrea for more than three years now”.

Gebremeskel also accused Ethiopia of seeking to take the Eritrean port of Assab and restore access to the Red Sea. The claim was linked to statements by Ethiopian officials, although the available information does not independently establish that Ethiopia intended to seize the port.

Disputed role of the TPLF

The accusations came amid fighting involving the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, or TPLF. Ethiopia has accused Eritrea of backing the group, but Eritrea has denied the allegation.

The TPLF was described as part of an alliance of seven armed groups that has sought to overthrow Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government since September. Ethiopia’s army pushed back the TPLF and seized Mekelle, the capital of the Tigray region.

Witnesses cited by AFP said the TPLF had also lost the cities of Shire and Adigrat. Several witnesses reportedly saw Eritrean troops in Adigrat before Ethiopian drone strikes hit them. The reported troop movements and strikes have not been independently confirmed, and no casualty figures were provided.

Diplomatic relations deteriorate

The military allegations were followed by further diplomatic measures. Ethiopia closed its embassy in Asmara and ordered 10 Eritrean diplomats to leave the country. Eritrea subsequently announced that it was severing diplomatic ties with Ethiopia.

The latest confrontation follows a complicated history between the two countries. Eritrea gained independence from Ethiopia in 1993, and the neighbours fought a border war that began in 1998 and lasted two years.

Relations improved somewhat after Abiy Ahmed came to power in Addis Ababa in 2018. Eritrea later fought alongside Ethiopia against the TPLF during the 2020-2022 civil war, but it was not part of the peace agreement that ended the conflict. Relations deteriorated after the agreement.

Ethiopia lost access to the coast when Eritrea became independent. Abiy has repeatedly said landlocked Ethiopia has a right to sea access, while Eritrea has viewed those ambitions as a threat to Assab.

The competing accounts leave the extent and nature of Eritrean military involvement in Tigray disputed. The available reporting also does not independently verify the territorial claims or the battlefield developments.