Eritrea asks UN to intervene in standoff with Ethiopia

Eritrea ​asked the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) to take deterrent measures against Ethiopia, according to a letter seen by Reuters , saying Addis ‌Ababa’s accusations of an invasion by Eritrean forces amounted to a “declaration of war”.

The incursion by Eritrean troops, which Asmara has denied and Reuters could not independently verify, has raised fears of a return to all-out war along Ethiopia’s northern border where the two Horn of Africa neighbours have clashed before.

Conflicts elsewhere in the region and tensions across the Red Sea have further raised the stakes.

Eritrean ​Foreign Minister Osman Saleh said in the letter that the incursion claims were part of an Ethiopian plan to justify a war of aggression. ​He urged the UN to intervene.

“Eritrea requests the UN Security Council to forcefully condemn Ethiopia’s deplorable declaration of war against ⁠Eritrea … and take the requisite deterrent measures against it in accordance with Chapter VII of the UN Charter,” he wrote.

Chapter VII allows for measures ranging from ​sanctions to military action, though Osman did not specify what measures Eritrea was calling for.

Advertisement · Scroll to continue Ethiopia itself wrote to Security Council members on Friday, stating that Eritrean troops had ​advanced up to 60 km (37 miles) inside the northern region of Tigray in recent days.

It warned that the presence of foreign troops left Addis Ababa with no option but to defend itself.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Saturday.