Date: Monday, 01 December 2025
Sharers and links :
According to observers of the situation in both countries, many commonalities and converging visions have continued to link Sudan and Eritrea regarding the necessity of protecting the sovereignty of states in the region and preventing foreign interference, the agreement that the stability of Sudan represents a cornerstone for the stability of the Horn of Africa, and the rejection of turning regional initiatives into ineffective platforms that do not address the root causes of the crisis. This is in addition to close and continuous coordination to confront cross-border threats, monitor suspicious activities, and control smuggling operations and the infiltration of armed groups across the border between the two countries, given that the tension in eastern Sudan directly affects Eritrean security, and vice versa. Due to Eritrea's strategic location on the Red Sea, economic analysts expect the implementation of partnerships in ports, trade, energy, and agriculture, and the development of border trade and its transformation from a traditional activity into organized economic cooperation that serves the interests of both sides. This is in addition to the existence of opportunities for greater economic integration that can contribute to the development of the eastern region in Sudan and strengthen Eritrea's trade infrastructure.
A decisive stance :
These shared political, security, and economic ties, along with social bonds, motivated Eritrea to adopt a clear and decisive stance on the Sudanese war, which it considered a targeting of Sudan as a state and people by regional and international powers seeking to reshape the balance of influence in the region. This prompted Eritrea to declare its allegiance to the Sudanese army as the backbone of the state and the guarantor of its unity, and to consider any harm to it a direct threat to regional stability. Asmara rejects the various mediations, which Afwerki described as having turned into “bazaars” that do not produce realistic solutions, and focuses instead on supporting the Sudanese to take the lead in the settlement themselves. The Eritrean president’s statements confirm that dismantling Sudan or weakening its army will create a dangerous security vacuum whose impact will extend to the Red Sea and the Horn of Africa.
Implications of Afwerki's threats :
President Isaias Afwerki's threat of military intervention should the war approach the border states carries profound implications, reflecting a shift in Eritrean foreign policy doctrine, which usually avoids direct intervention. This reflects the seriousness of the current situation, and that Eritrea considers Sudan's eastern border the first line of defense for its security. The Eritrean leadership is firmly convinced that the fall of eastern Sudan into the hands of hostile forces could open a front that directly threatens Asmara. Moreover, President Afwerki's threat carries a regional deterrent message that Sudan's security will not be left to a vacuum, militias, or foreign interventions, and that the war in Sudan is not local but part of a regional power struggle from which Eritrea believes it will be one of the affected if it is not resolved in favor of the stability of the Sudanese state.
Important conclusion :
