Ethiopia Condemns US Sanctions On Eritrea
Ethiopia on Saturday denounced new US sanctions on neighbouring Eritrea over Asmara’s role in the deadly conflict pitting Ethiopian forces against Tigrayan rebels, calling on Washington to “rescind its decision”.
“The real target for sanctions and further tougher actions by the US government and the greater international community should be directed towards the TPLF,” Ethiopia’s foreign ministry said, referring to the Tigray People’s Liberation Front rebel group.
Eritrean and Ethiopian forces have been accused of carrying out mass rapes and massacres in Tigray and Washington has repeatedly urged Asmara to withdraw its troops.
On Saturday Eritrea said the sanctions reflected a “misguided and hostile policy” by the US, and were based on false allegations.
“This unilateral sanction, that shifts blame to and scapegoats Eritrea on the basis of spurious allegations, is in contravention of international law, and constitutes a flagrant breach of… sovereignty,” the authoritarian state’s ministry of information said in a statement.
“That the primary aim of the illicit and immoral sanctions is to inculcate suffering and starvation on the population so as to induce political unrest and instability is patently clear.”
Ethiopia on Saturday declared its support for Eritrea, denouncing the sanctions and urging its former ally Washington to “rescind its decision”.
“The real target for sanctions and further tougher actions by the US government and the greater international community should be directed towards the TPLF,” Ethiopia’s foreign ministry said, stressing that Eritrea was “not an impediment to sustainable peace”.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has also threatened to impose sanctions against Abiy’s government and the rebels unless they move forward on talks, warning that Ethiopia risks “implosion” if fighting continues.
“We are not imposing sanctions at this time on elements aligned with the government of Ethiopia and TPLF to allow time and space to see if these talks can make progress,” Blinken said, ahead of a three-nation trip to Africa next week.
But Cameron Hudson, a former US official now at the Atlantic Council, said the sanctions had missed the mark.
“Prime Minister Abiy remains in the driver’s seat of this conflict and choosing to once again avoid sanctioning Ethiopian entities reflects a belief from Washington that Abiy can be engaged and his approach to this conflict changed,” he said.
“There is nothing particularly in evidence to support that assumption, however.”
– Rights abuses –
As fighting has dragged on, the humanitarian toll has spiked, with reports of massacres and mass rapes.
