After over two decades of hostilities, the East African countries of Eritrea and Ethiopia have finally reached a peace agreement. On July 9, 2018, Ethiopian Prime Minister, Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President, Isaias Afwerki, signed a joint declaration of peace and friendship.
Greeted by applauds and people celebrating, the agreement brings to an end over 20 years of conflict between the two neighbouring countries.
But what does this mean for both countries? How does it change anything? What significance will this peace be to east Africa? These are important questions in Ethiopian-Eritrean relations. But to answer them, let’s have a brief background to the issue.
What Led to Hostilities Between Ethiopia and Eritrea
Hostilities between the two East African countries date back to the decolonization period in Africa. As a noted fact, Ethiopia was never colonised.
Although it was briefly occupied by Italy during the run-up to World War Two, it was later liberated. Ethiopia was among the 50 nations that signed the original Atlantic Charter that created the United Nations in 1945.
However, Eritrea on the other hand fell to Italy. And when the Italians failed in during World War Two, Eritrea was handed over to Ethiopia in 1952. It was made autonomous, with Ethiopia administering both nations’ foreign and defense policies.
However, hostilities began when Eritrean separatists militarised in the 1960s. Ethiopia in return annulled Eritrea’s autonomy and annexed that country.
But with a coup and an eventual Civil War (1974-1991) in Ethiopia, Eritrean rebels helped to oust the Ethiopian army from the area. With the role they played during that civil war, Eritreans were rewarded with a referendum to decide whether or not they wanted to be independent. Eritreans voted largely to leave. Independence came in 1993.
Nevertheless, soon after independence, the two countries went at loggerheads with each other over border issues. Both nations failed to reach an agreement over an acceptable border arrangement, and this flung them back into hostilities.
By 1998, the Ethiopia-Eritrea War broke out, forcing both nations, already poor, to spend heavily on their militaries.
After a disastrous period of fighting involving trench warfare, mediations by African players and the US finally paid off. By May 2000, the war ended, but it killed over 70,000 people and displacing hundreds of thousands.
By June 2000, both countries signed the more comprehensive Algiers Peace Agreement. They agreed to “permanently terminate military hostilities” and establish a “neutral Boundary Commission” that will have full authority to delimit and demarcate the boundaries. That commission passed its judgement in April 2002, ruling that Badme, the territory that triggered the crisis, is part of Eritrea.
Ethiopia resented the decision and never complied with it; thus allowing creating a cold war situation.
What is the Significance of the Ethiopia-Eritrea Detente? How Will Things Change Now?
However, following a change of government in Ethiopia in May 2018, the country immediately decided to cease hostilities with its neighbour.
Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed announced in June 2018, that he would comply with the 2002 agreement. He announced the withdrawal of Ethiopian forces from Badme and other disputed territories.
In response, Eritrea sent a delegation to Addis Ababa. And this paved the way for further discussions, culminating in the peace meeting between both countries in July.
Now, there is much significance in the agreement reached at this historic event. And some of them could have far reaching impacts on the not just the two countries, but East Africa and the rest of Africa. Here are a few thoughts.
Mutual Decision to De-escalate Tensions Represents a New Hope for the Continent
One remarkable fact about the detente between Ethiopia and Eritrea is that it was reached with minimal efforts from external players. And this is an important significance of the Ethiopia-Eritrea detente.
For decades, belligerents in African conflicts hardly ever strive to reach an agreement on their own, even as a last resort. Agreements are majorly forged after much mediation by bodies such as the UN, AU, and other countries.
Ethiopia’s fine resolve to lead bring about a transformation in relations will go a long way. And it could inspire more African conflicts to pursue dialogue as an important tool in addressing differences.
Development Issues Now Become More Important
For decades, both countries expended a huge amount of resources on developing their military capabilities. Ethiopia for example increased its total number of soldiers from 60,000 in 1997 to 350,000 in 2000. And it increased its defence budget from $95m to $777m during the same period.
As a result, both countries became vulnerable to poverty, as development issue were sidelined.
With a detente, both countries can forge ahead with other important national economic issues, such as poverty, refugees and infrastructural development.
In the long run though, it is expected that peace between the two countries will lead to economic benefits. Ethiopia already has one the world’s fastest growing economies; and this growth looks poised to continue. Commerce, trade and tourism are all expected to grow for both countries. Ethiopia has already signalled its resolve, allowing its Ethiopian Airlines travel company to operate in Eritrea since July 18.
One particular benefit of the peace deal is Ethiopia’s new route to see. Despite having one of the largest economies in Africa, Ethiopia remains a landlocked country. Interestingly, it became landlocked when Eritrea became independent in 1993.
Nonetheless, it has used ports in Djibouti to aid its commerce for years. However, with the removal hostilities with its neighbour, the country can once again take advantage of Eritrea’s port facilities. And the revenue generated from this port will do much to shore up Eritrea’s purse.
However, this would also mean trouble for Djibouti. The tiny African country has benefitted from the conflict for so long. With Eritrea’s port open to Ethiopia, Djibouti will suffer from lost revenues and economic uncertainty. This is another noteworthy significance of the Ethiopia-Eritrea detente.
A New Outlook for East Africa’s Challenges
The resolution of the Ethiopia-Eritrea crisis means East African countries can now move on to address other more important geopolitical issues.
Like the Cold War, the dispute has plunged both nations into pursing disruptive policies in the region. For instance, while the East African region struggles to curtail the Al Shabab terror group in Somalia, Ethiopia’s focus is on stomping out Eritrean influence in that country.
In 2006, Addis Ababa sent troops into Somalia, not just for anti-terror activities, but to curtail Eritrea’s influence on Somali politics.
The new peace deal will help solidify regional attempts against the terror group, as well as other concerns.
Conclusion
The Ethiopia-Eritrea crisis has been one of the most annoying conflicts on the African continent. It forced both nations from focusing on core issues and forced them into developing cold war mindsets. Their militaries were expanded, but development issues were somewhat ignored.
However, with the resolve of the new Ethiopian prime minister and the signing of a peace deal, normalcy is being brought back to their conducts. Although it’s still too early to tell, but peace between the two neighbours brings hope and benefits to them and Africa.