Ethiopia vs. Eritrea

1993 - ongoing by 2011

Core issue: Border demarcation conflict after Eritrea gained indepedence in 1993.

Type of conflict ending: Conflict ongoing by 2011

The conflict between Ethiopia and Eritrea was a conflict over territorial control, first over Eritrea's independence, and then over disputed border territory. This territorial conflict was a product of the Italian and British colonial past. In 1950, the United Nations decided to combine Eritrea and Ethiopia as a federation. However, by the early 1960s, Ethiopia had begun downgrading Eritrea's federal status, which culminated in Ethiopia stripping Eritrea of any autonomous status. This sparked the beginning of resistance from Eritrean nationalist organizations who demanded independence. Without Eritrea confined within its borders, Ethiopia would be a landlocked country without easy access to the Red Sea, so Ethiopians wanted to maintain the territorial integrity of the current state borders.

The fighting commenced as early as 1961 with the creation of the Eritrean Liberation Front (ELF). The ELF soon split apart into different factions, the largest and most influential being the Eritrean People Liberation Front (EPLF). While both fought for independence, the EPLF had strong religious and socialist ideologies that attracted foreign support. The EPLF became the dominant fighting group in Eritrea by the 1980s, but the fighting between the guerilla groups added to the existing violence.

Ethiopia had to deal with multiple conflicts at the same time as the Eritrean War. The Eritrean rebels were successful in gaining almost 85 percent of their territory, until 1977 when Ethiopia defeated Somalia in the Ogaden War. This victory allowed Ethiopia to redirect its forces to the Eritrean struggle. While the Eritreans were defeated in 1978, fighting resumed in the early 1980s. In September 1989, the Ethiopian Government and the EPLF met at the Carter Center in Atlanta for peace talks. Another round of negotiations was held two months later in Nairobi, but without much progress.

By 1991, the EPLF managed to take control of 90 percent of Eritrean territory and gained the support of the international community. The fighting continued until 1992, when the UN supported Eritrea's proposal to hold a referendum on the question of independence from Ethiopia. 99 percent of Eritreans endorsed independence on May 23, 1993. In the same year, Eritrea was admitted as a member of the United Nations.

Although the war ended in 1993, the border territory had not been clearly demarcated, which constitutes the core issue of the interstate enmity. As relations between the two countries worsened, this unresolved issue became the flashpoint for conflict. In May 1998, direct combat over the small border town of Badme followed, thereby resulting in approximately 120,000 battle deaths. While there were some attempts to settle the issue diplomatically, neither side could reach an agreement. The leaders in Eritrea used the conflict to unify the ethnically diverse population and justify stronger legislation and control of the population. In April 2000, Ethiopian forces managed to slowly push back the Eritrean military beyond the point of initial conflict. In 2001, both sides agreed to a ceasefire and a UN peacekeeping mission to create a Temporary Security Zone. There was also an agreement to create an Independent Boundary Commission to resolve the core issue.

The positive development did not last. First, Ethiopia rejected the ruling of the Commission which placed the town of Badme in Eritrea, and second, Eritrea expelled UN personnel considering them to be spies and acting to the detriment of Eritrea. Although the UN attempted to negotiate with Eritrea, there was no success, and in 2008, the mission was disbanded. This indicates that although there were temporary positive developments, the core issue of territorial control was no resolved by 2011. This has meant military posturing along the border by both sides, and an atmosphere of distrust.

Sources

Butcher, C. and M. Maru, 2018. "Diversionary Tactics and the Ethiopia-Eritrea War (1998-2000)", Small Wars & Insurgencies, 29 (1), 68-90.

Pateman, R., 1986. "Eritrea, Ethiopia, and the Middle Eastern Powers: Image and Reality", Northeast African Studies, 8 (2/3), 23-39.

Pateman, R., 1990. "The Eritrean War", Armed Forces & Society, 17 (1), 81-98.

Ylönen, A., 2019. "From demonisation to rapprochement: Abiy Ahmed's early reforms and implications of the coming together of Ethiopia and Eritrea", Global Change, Peace & Security, 31 (3), 341-349.