Egyptian Analyst Rebukes Egypt's Leaders for Trying to Block Ethiopia’s Sovereign Right to Red Sea

Addis Ababa, October 15, 2026 (ENA) — The Egyptian political analyst Magdi Khalil has strongly criticized the leaders of Egypt for opposing and fighting Ethiopia's right of access to the Red Sea. 

“If there were leaders in Egypt with vision and foresight, they would work to help Ethiopia gain access to the Red Sea instead of opposing and fighting it,” he said.

The Egyptian analyst criticized the country's opposition to Ethiopia’s efforts to secure access to the Red Sea and called on Egypt to reassess its policy toward Ethiopia and shift from confrontation to cooperation.

In a Zoom interview with ENA, Khalil said that Ethiopia, as a large landlocked country, has the sovereign right to gain access to the Red Sea.

“Ethiopia has the sovereign right to conclude agreements with countries to secure one or more outlets on the Red Sea, provided this is done peacefully, whether for fifty or one hundred years,” he added.

The analyst further questioned the reasons behind opposition to Ethiopia’s access to the Red Sea, noting that Ethiopia’s historical coastal presence had not been a source of harm to neighboring countries.

Ethiopia’s demands should therefore be addressed through cooperation and mutual interests rather than political confrontation and hostility.

Khalil called for a meeting involving the countries bordering the Red Sea to discuss shared interests and reach regional understandings.

The Egyptian analyst stressed the importance of replacing hostile competition with cooperation, emphasizing that peaceful agreements could provide a practical framework for addressing Ethiopia’s maritime needs.

According to him, some countries were willing to reach agreements with Ethiopia to provide maritime access, arguing that long-term arrangements could strengthen cooperation and stability in the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea region.

Furthermore, Khalil criticized Egypt’s historical position on the Eritrean issue, noting that Egypt, alongside other Arab countries, participated in supporting the Eritrean Liberation Front, which was established in Cairo in 1960.

He argued that Eritrea’s independence in 1991 and Ethiopia’s subsequent landlocked status necessitate a reassessment of the regional positions that contributed to this situation. 

The analyst described Egypt’s support for the Eritrean movement as a historical mistake that harmed relations that should have been based on cooperation between the two countries.