Addis Abeba — Eritrea has announced it will sever all diplomatic ties with Ethiopia, saying it has "no option but to reciprocate in kind" after Addis Abeba ordered the closure of its embassy in Asmara and declared 10 Eritrean diplomats persona non grata.
International relations analysis In a press statement issued on Thursday, Eritrea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected Ethiopia's allegations of hostile activities, describing the diplomatic measures as "unwarranted acts of hostility."
The Eritrean government accused Ethiopia of pursuing "an agenda of incessant hostility" over the past three years, which it said amounted to a "publicly pronounced declaration of war" driven by Addis Abeba's ambition to secure sovereign access to the sea.
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Asmara alleged that Ethiopia had pursued plans to acquire access to Eritrean ports and coastal areas through military invasion. It further accused the Ethiopian government of hosting, training, and arming groups it described as "Eritrean armed opposition groups" to foment internal conflict and pursue regime change in Eritrea.
Eritrea said it had exercised patience and restraint in an effort to prevent further escalation but maintained that the current circumstances left it with no alternative but to sever diplomatic relations with Ethiopia, warning of the "negative corollaries" of the decision.
The announcement came hours after Ethiopia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it had decided to close its embassy in Asmara and ordered 10 Eritrean diplomats, including officials accused of activities threatening national security, to leave the country within 48 hours.
Ethiopia said its decision was in response to Eritrea's "direct and indirect acts of hostility and belligerence against Ethiopia," alleging that the diplomats had engaged in activities violating the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
Neither government provided independently verifiable details of the specific security allegations raised against the other.
The reciprocal diplomatic measures mark a major deterioration in relations between the two countries,
