The Ethiopian government called on the Sudanese government to abandon “escalation and provocation” and move towards a “peaceful settlement” of the border dispute between the two countries.
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The Ethiopian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, in a statement, that it “condemns in the strongest terms the escalation and the provocative behavior of the government of Sudan with regard to the issue of the border between Ethiopia and Sudan.”
The ministry indicated that Ethiopia believes that any conflict between the two countries will only lead to “massive collateral damage and endanger the well-being of the two countries.”
The statement stressed that the Ethiopian government “firmly believes that the conflict promoted by the Sudanese government’s military wing will only serve the interests of a third party at the expense of the Sudanese people.”
The ministry considered that the two governments have adequate mechanisms to deal with any claims related to the borders or conditions in the region, and accused the Sudanese National Army of violating the basic principles of international law and the peaceful settlement of disputes by “unofficially invading Ethiopia” in early November 2020.
The ministry stressed: “Contrary to the spirit of friendship and cooperation existing between the two brotherly countries, the Sudanese army looted property, burned camps, attacked and displaced thousands of Ethiopians and took control of the Ethiopian military camps that were evacuated.”
“The Sudanese army’s attempt to push the two friendly peoples in Ethiopia and Sudan into an unjustified war and a fatal mistake that would undermine their peace, stability and development in the two countries in particular and the region in general,” the ministry added.
She affirmed Ethiopia’s commitment to the peaceful settlement of the border issue, and called on “once again the government of Sudan to cease provocation and resort to a peaceful settlement of the border issue.”
The Sudanese-Ethiopian relations have been witnessing an escalating tension for weeks against the backdrop of armed attacks on the borders of the two countries, which Khartoum says were carried out by Ethiopian militias backed by government forces on Sudanese territory.
In turn, Ethiopia accused the Sudanese forces of “seizing 9 regions” within the Ethiopian borders and “violating the agreement signed between the two countries in 1972 on border issues by invading Ethiopian lands.”
There is a conflict between some components of the population in the border region of Fashaqa, as its Sudanese residents accuse Ethiopian tribes of using this land for agriculture for their benefit in some seasons of the year.
Source: “Ethiopian News Agency” + agencies
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