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(Bloomberg) Saudi Brokers Ethiopia, Eritrea Deal to Boost Regional Security

Posted by: Semere Asmelash

Date: Monday, 17 September 2018

Saudi Brokers Ethiopia, Eritrea Deal to Boost Regional Security

17 september 2018 06:30 CEST Updated on 17 september 2018 12:07 CEST
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    Jeddah Peace Accord signed in presence of Saudi king, UN chief
  •  -
    Saudi Arabia seeking greater influence in Horn of Africa
Abiy Ahmed, right, and Isaias Afwerki at a signing ceremony hosted by King of Saudi Arabia on Sept. 16. Photographer: Bandar Algaloud/Saudi Kingdom Council/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images
Saudi Arabia brokered a new peace agreement between Ethiopia and Eritrea aimed at stabilizing the Horn of Africa region, Foreign Minister Adel Al-Jubeir said.
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki signed the so-called Jeddah Peace Accord on Sunday in the presence of King Salman bin Abdulaziz and United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres. It’s the second peace deal the two states have made since they ended decades of enmity in July.
The deal is “a historic milestone for the peoples of Ethiopia and Eritrea and will contribute to strengthening security and stability in the region at large,” Al-Jubeir said in a statement on Twitter.
The agreement comes after “extensive Saudi back-channel diplomacy” to maintain stability and development in one of the world’s most strategic locations, Saud al-Sarhan, secretary-general of the King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, said by email from Riyadh. Eritrea is located near the near Bab el-Mandeb, a shipping choke-point on the Red Sea used by oil tankers and other cargo vessels en route to Europe and the U.S. through the Suez Canal.

Click here to read a report about Eritrea’s regional ambitions

The accord can also be viewed as Riyadh “moving forward on a key element” of Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s so-called Vision 2030, which aims to make Saudi Arabia a global logistical and shipping hub, al-Sarhan said.

This “can only be realized if the Horn of Africa is at peace,” al-Sarhan said. “Hosting the signing of the Ethiopian-Eritrean peace agreement in Jeddah is an important sign of Saudi Arabia’s commitment to regional peace, security, and the freedom of navigation in the Red Sea.”

Eritrea and Ethiopia declared peace in July and agreed to reestablish economic links after an unprecedented summit between the neighbors’ leaders ended decades of enmity. The states fought a 1998-2000 border war that claimed as many as 100,000 lives and left thousands of Ethiopian and Eritrean families divided. The two sides have clashed sporadically in the years since and accused each other of supporting rival rebel groups.
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