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Growing worries exist over the possibility of warfare among Horn of Africa neighbours, Ethiopia and Eritrea, as aggressive language has ratcheted up in recent weeks.

What Has Ethiopia Stated?

Landlocked Ethiopia's requests for passage to the sea coast through Eritrean territory has triggered a heated rhetorical conflict.

PM Abiy Ahmed first openly declared in last year that his government's sea access was an crucial concern, comments that Eritrean authorities dismissed.

Relations between the neighboring nations have frequently been strained. Following a decades-long struggle for freedom, Eritrea, which has a extensive maritime frontage, officially seceded from Ethiopian rule in the early 1990s, rendering it cut off from the sea.

Subsequently, a territorial conflict erupted in which numerous people lost their lives.

Current Statements from Ethiopia's Officials

Prime Minister Abiy and military leader the army commander have openly claimed control of Eritrea's maritime facility of the port of Assab – about 60km from the border - and hinted at the desire to capture it through military means.

In early September, the Prime Minister said the country's "blunder" of losing access to the Red Sea as a result of Eritrea secession would be "rectified soon".

The Ethiopian envoy to Kenya, ex-military officer Bacha, said that the port was "Ethiopian property" and would be restored "by force".

Eritrean Response to the Statements

Amid persistent threats from Ethiopia, Asmara's position has been limited to short statements on online platforms from Information Minister the minister.

He has rejected Ethiopian requests for access to the Red Sea calling it "risky" and a "toxic agenda" of "expansionism" – a policy of retaking former lands.

Eritrean authorities warned on 16 September that moves to validate "flagrant aggression" would have serious consequences for Ethiopia and its regional partners and is a "boundary that should not be crossed|violated|breached".

Security Activities on the Region

So far, there are no reports of significant troop deployments in the border areas between the two countries.

Nevertheless, in the country, state television has broadcast graduation ceremonies of numerous trainees at different defense facilities.

The leader of personnel division of the defense force, General Hachalu, stated recently in an interview that the military was in a "strong stance" as "many thousands of young people" were joining it, which he said was "a message to our opponents".

Historical Origins of the Tension

For more than half a century from the late 19th century, Eritrea was ruled by Italian colonisers.

After Italy's defeat, it was then administered by the British military before turning into a integrated region of Ethiopia.

However in the early 1960s the Ethiopian emperor cancelled this agreement and Eritrea became fully incorporated into Ethiopia.

A thirty-year civil war occurred, ending with the government's loss in the early 1990s. Autonomy was then confirmed by voters in a referendum in 1993.

Briefly in the 1990s, there were good relations between the authorities in Ethiopia's capital and Asmara, but they clashed over the precise positioning of their shared boundary, causing conflict in 1998.

Though this ended in a truce in 2000, it was never fully implemented, and the neighbors stayed at odds.

This ended in 2018, when Abiy made overtures to Eritrea's leader the president. The both leaders signed a statement that the war was concluded – a move that gained Abiy the Nobel Peace Prize.

The both administrations were then allies in Ethiopia's previous internal conflict in the northern region.

But diplomatic connections have since broken down anew.