Ethiopia’s ruling Prosperity Party has accused Eritrea of attempting to stoke conflict in the country, in what marks the latest escalation in a rapidly deteriorating relationship between the two former allies.
In a statement issued on Friday following a week-long leadership meeting in Addis Ababa, the party alleged that unnamed “forces” — described as “enemies” whose ambitions for a protracted war had been thwarted — are working to destabilise Ethiopia. While Eritrea was not mentioned explicitly, the context pointed strongly towards Asmara.
The two countries fought side by side during Ethiopia’s two-year war against Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) forces, but ties soured after the 2022 Pretoria peace deal. Since then, both governments have traded accusations of plotting fresh hostilities, with Eritrea claiming that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed seeks to seize its sovereign territory under the guise of gaining “access to the sea” — a policy Addis Ababa calls its “natural and historical right.”
The Prosperity Party also accused domestic armed groups, including the Amhara region’s Fano militia and the Oromo Liberation Army (OLA), of receiving backing from Ethiopia’s “enemies.”
The standoff has prompted both countries to deploy troops along their shared border, particularly near the strategic Assab port, raising fears that a new conflict could erupt
