Ethiopia renews push for Red sea access
After being sworn in for a second full term, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said his government would work diligently to ensure Ethiopia had “an outlet to the sea.”
Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has reignited the debate over sea access for his landlocked nation, potentially exacerbating regional tensions amid renewed fighting in the northern Tigray region. In his second full term, Abiy told parliament that his government will work diligently to secure "an outlet to the sea" for Ethiopia.
This issue is described by Abiy as existential for his country, though he did not specify which location. Neighboring Eritrea's Red Sea port of Assab has been a potential target for Ethiopia, as it was part of Ethiopia until Eritrea gained independence in the 1990s, leaving Ethiopia without a coastline. Prior to Abiy's remarks, Eritrea, along with Egypt, Somalia, and Sudan, stated that control of the Red Sea is the "exclusive responsibility" of the countries that border it.
These maritime access tensions add to the domestic conflict in Ethiopia, where rebel groups have vowed to overthrow the government four years after a civil war that killed hundreds of thousands of people.
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