NAIROBI: The leaders of Egypt, Eritrea and Somalia pledged Thursday to work together on regional security at an unprecedented summit held against a backdrop of heightened tensions in the Horn of Africa. Thursday’s summit in Asmara signalled the forging of a new regional alliance in the Horn, with Ethiopia — Africa’s second-most populous nation — left out in the cold. Relations have soured dramatically between Ethiopia and neighboring Somalia, which was enraged by the Somaliland maritime deal and has since moved closer to Addis Ababa’s longtime regional rival Cairo. Relations between Addis Ababa and Asmara have also been deteriorating recently, even though Eritrean troops backed Ethiopian government forces in the brutal 2020-2022 war against Tigrayan rebels. Analysts say Eritrea was not happy with the peace agreement between Addis Ababa and Asmara’s longstanding enemy the Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), and still has troops in parts of Tigray.

Source: Ethiopian News October 10, 2024 13:02 UTC