Eritrea Accuses Ethiopia of Destabilizing Horn and Supporting Sudan’s RSF

Eritrea accuses Ethiopia of destabilizing the Horn of Africa and supporting Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces. The allegations mark a new escalation in tensions between Addis Ababa and Asmara.

Eritrea accuses Ethiopia of destabilizing the Horn of Africa and supporting Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces, widening an increasingly hostile dispute between the two neighboring governments.

Eritrea’s Foreign Ministry said on Saturday, September 12, that Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s Prosperity Party government was “actively destabilising the Horn of Africa,” according to an AFP report updated at 16:20.

The latest accusations come as Ethiopia-Eritrea relations remain tense over Red Sea access, security concerns and unresolved regional disputes. Earlier this year, Ethiopia formally accused Eritrea of aggression and demanded the withdrawal of Eritrean troops while proposing negotiations over Red Sea access.

The new Eritrean statement goes further by directly linking Ethiopia to the war in neighboring Sudan.

Eritrea Accuses Ethiopia of Supporting Sudan’s RSF

Eritrea alleged that Ethiopia is “harboring, supporting and actively encouraging” Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces, according to AFP.

The RSF has been fighting the Sudanese Armed Forces since April 2023 in a conflict that has devastated Sudan and increasingly affected neighboring countries.Read Political News

Eritrea did not publicly present independently verifiable evidence establishing Ethiopian support for the RSF in the statement cited by AFP. Ethiopia had not responded to AFP’s request for comment at the time the report was published.

The allegation should therefore be treated as an Eritrean government claim rather than an independently established fact.

The accusation is nevertheless important because Sudan’s war has become increasingly connected to broader Horn of Africa tensions, including military activity near Ethiopia’s western frontier and growing rivalry among regional governments.

Eritrean government commentary has made similar accusations before. In an August 18 article published by the Eritrean Ministry of Information, Asmara accused Ethiopia’s ruling Prosperity Party of supporting and hosting elements associated with the RSF.

Those claims have not been independently established.

Asmara Alleges Support for Eritrean Opposition Groups

Eritrea accuses Ethiopia not only of involvement in Sudan but also of supporting groups seeking political change inside Eritrea.

According to AFP, Eritrea said Addis Ababa has for more than three years escalated hostile rhetoric and allegedly “hosted, trained, and financed” organizations pursuing what Asmara described as a regime-change agenda.

Eritrean authorities have previously accused Ethiopia of supporting groups including the Red Sea Afar Democratic Organization and other Eritrean opposition movements.

Again, no independently verified evidence establishing those allegations was presented in the AFP report.

The rhetoric reflects the broader deterioration in relations between the two governments after several years of closer cooperation following their 2018 reconciliation.

Ethiopia-Eritrea Relations Continue to Deteriorate

Ethiopia and Eritrea restored diplomatic relations in 2018 after nearly two decades of hostility following their 1998-2000 border war.

Eritrean forces later fought alongside Ethiopia’s federal military during the 2020-2022 Tigray war.

Relations subsequently deteriorated, particularly after Eritrea was excluded from the November 2022 Pretoria Agreement that ended the main phase of the conflict between Ethiopia’s federal government and the Tigray People’s Liberation Front.

Tensions in Tigray have since become increasingly connected to relations between Addis Ababa and Asmara.

Recent political developments have included a TPLF realignment and growing concerns over relationships between Tigrayan political actors and Eritrea.Read Political News

Former Tigray interim leader Getachew Reda has also accused the TPLF leadership of moving toward renewed confrontation with the federal government and developing cooperation with Eritrea, allegations covered in earlier Kulu Media reporting.

Red Sea Dispute Remains Central

Another major source of tension is Ethiopia’s push for more secure access to the Red Sea.

Landlocked Ethiopia has repeatedly described maritime access as strategically important for its economy and long-term national interests.

Eritrea has responded strongly to suggestions involving the port of Assab, arguing that its sovereignty and territorial integrity are non-negotiable.

The Eritrean government has repeatedly accused Ethiopia’s ruling party of advancing what it describes as expansionist policies toward the Red Sea.

Ethiopia, meanwhile, has publicly said it seeks peaceful negotiations over maritime access and has rejected claims that it intends to seize Eritrean territory by force.

Sudan, Tigray and Eritrea Disputes Increasingly Intersect

The fact that Eritrea accuses Ethiopia of both threatening Eritrean security and supporting one of Sudan’s main warring parties shows how several regional disputes are increasingly overlapping.

Sudan’s war is affecting areas close to Ethiopia’s western border, while tensions involving Tigray and Eritrea continue in the north.Stream History Documentaries

At the same time, disputes over Red Sea access are adding another strategic dimension to the relationship between Addis Ababa and Asmara.

For now, Eritrea’s claims about Ethiopian support for the RSF and Eritrean opposition groups remain allegations requiring independent verification.

But the increasingly direct language from Asmara represents another deterioration in Ethiopia-Eritrea relations and raises concern that conflicts involving Sudan, Tigray and the wider Horn of Africa could become more closely connected.