Ethiopian and Eritrean troops 70-80 meteres from eachother..

[adanboy]

"At this time there is little separation of troops from the two neighbours. ... The armies of the two countries are only 70 or 80 meters apart," he added at a news conference.

By Tsegaye Tadesse

ADDIS ABABA, Sept 10 (Reuters) - Ethiopia said on Monday its army was just metres apart from Eritrean soldiers who had moved into a buffer zone on the Horn of Africa foes' disputed border.

"Eritrea has moved thousands of troops and heavy weapons inside the Temporary Security Zone, despite numerous U.N. Security Council resolutions demanding their withdrawal," Ethiopian Foreign Minister Seyoum Mesfin told reporters.

"At this time there is little separation of troops from the two neighbours. ... The armies of the two countries are only 70 or 80 meters apart," he added at a news conference.

Ethiopia and Eritrea fought a 1998-2000 war over their frontier, resulting in a boundary ruling by an independent commission that has been a source of friction ever since.

Seyoum said Eritrea's actions on the border -- which Ethiopia has been denouncing for about a year -- ruined recent talks between the two nations and a Hague-based international commission that ruled on the boundary in 2002.

"The talks in the Hague stalled because Eritrea occupied the 25-km Temporary Security Zone, in violation of the secession of hostilities agreement, which would have allowed demarcation of the border," he told a news conference.

"Eritrea's actions are in open defiance of a number of Security Council resolutions and constitute a fundamental breach of the Algiers agreement," he added, referring to a peace agreement after the war that killed some 70,000 people.

At the weekend, Eritrea accused Ethiopia of scuppering the Hague talks by refusing to move forward even if Eritrea followed the boundary commission's recommendations on its side.

Asmara denies sending its army close to Ethiopia's, saying Prime Minister Meles Zenawi's government is inventing allegations to distract attention from domestic problems.

As part of their 2000 peace deal, both Ethiopia and Eritrea agreed to accept as final and binding the boundary commission's ruling. But the process halted after Addis Ababa rejected the decision which awarded the flashpoint town of Badme to Eritrea.

OGADEN CONFLICT

Seyoum accused Eritrea of harbouring terrorist groups, including militant Islamist leader Sheikh Hassan Dahir Aweys, who has shown up in Asmara at a Somali opposition meeting.

Seyoum denied human rights allegations of atrocities by Ethiopian troops against rebels in eastern Ogaden region.

"To our knowledge, there was not one village destroyed or burnt in the recent action against the Ogaden National Liberation Movement (ONLF)," he said.

"What was going on in Somali region was clearing the terrorist ONLF -- and that has been been achieved."

Ethiopia launched a major military campaign against the ONLF after it attacked a Chinese-run oil exploration field in April, killing 74 people.

The ONLF says the government is terrorising the population, while the Medecins Sans Frontieres charity said recently it had seen burned out and deserted villages in the area.

"I hope the U.N. mission which visited the region will clear the situation," Seyoum added of a U.N. team which has spent a week in the remote and arid region of mainly nomadic herders.

[Shilka]

I wonder why Eritrea made the first move---I thought it was Ethiopia looking towards expanding itself.

[adanboy]

[quote="Shilka"]I wonder why Eritrea made the first move---I thought it was Ethiopia looking towards expanding itself.[/quote]

its because Eritrea cant wait to be attcked by warplaes..I think they will do first strike pretty soon...

The last talk for peace colapsed..

Eritrea blames arch-foe Ethiopia for collapse of border talks

Sat Sep 8, 4:35 PM ET

ASMARA (AFP) - Eritrea on Saturday blamed arch-foe Ethiopia for the failure of the latest talks aimed at solving their long-running bitter border dispute, an official statement said Saturday.
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Officials from the two African foes met face-to-face Thursday with a UN-appointed border panel in The Hague in a last-ditch attempt to break the frontier deadlock following their bloody 1998-2000 border war.

But an official letter from the Eritrean president's legal advisor posted Saturday on the Eritrean information ministry's website accused Ethiopia of blocking progress with an "unwillingness to allow demarcation on the ground."

The independent Eritrea-Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC), formed after the end of the two countries' border war, will dissolve in November, and the frontier will be fixed on maps if no progress is made by then.

Analysts are increasingly concerned at rising tensions over the border, fearing a potential return to war.

"After recognizing that it was not possible to make progress because Ethiopia was still refusing to cooperate, the commission was forced to adjourn," said the letter on the Eritrean website.

It did not add when -- or if -- the commission is expected to meet with parties again.

The meeting was aimed to push forward efforts to physically demarcate the tense border with pillars erected by UN peacekeepers (UNMEE).

"Eritrea presented a proposal to the commission at the start of the meeting that agreed in writing to every point on the commission's agenda," the letter added.

However, Asmara said Addis Ababa had refused to shift its position.

The EEBC has repeatedly expressed its frustration at hardline stances on both sides that have prevented the physical marking of the border.

But Eritrea has often complained that the international community -- especially the United States -- has not done enough to make Ethiopia accept the new border.

Ethiopia has called for a revision of the 2002 ruling that awarded the flashpoint town of Badme to Eritrea, arguing that it will split families and villages between the two countries. Asmara has rejected the call.

[FAH1223]

Eritrea is going to kick ass

[BushMan]

go Eritrea go!

[Shilka]

Did you know that Eritrea faced Ethiopia, the Soviets, and Cuba---while still managing to defeat Ethiopia.

Why did Somalia get crushed under that same circumstance?

[James Dahl]

More Ethiopian lies. The boundary commission already ruled in Eritrea's favor, and Ethiopia has consistently refused to abide by the commission's findings. When one party of a treaty patently refuses to agree to the terms of a peace treaty, the other party can hardly be expected to uphold their obligations.

TPLF is just stating the official "Party Line" regarding what is "the Truth", so everyone is clear as to what to think, and also so if people criticize the war then they are "Eritrean Stooges" or whatever.

[Shilka]

I would like someone to answer my question.

Why did little Eritrea manage to defeat a united Ethiopian-Soviet-Cuban army while Somalia crumbled under that pressure?

[muktaar]

shilk"Did you know that Eritrea faced Ethiopia, the Soviets, and Cuba---while still managing to defeat Ethiopia.

Why did Somalia get crushed under that same circumstance?"


the answer is simple, Eritera were one ppl , one army, and had one objective..

u couldnt say the same thing about Somalia , Somalia had traitors who sold their soul to the devil i.e the transtional government and its croonies

[Shilka]

The current transitional federal government in 1977?

Somalia was very united in 1977, I think has more to do with the greed in the army, the greed to push beyond Jigjiga, that crushed them, driving too deep into enemy and unnecessary territory. I think I may have answered my own question.

[muktaar]

[quote="Shilka"]The current transitional federal government in 1977?

Somalia was very united in 1977, I think has more to do with the greed in the army, the greed to push beyond Jigjiga, that crushed them, driving too deep into enemy and unnecessary territory. I think I may have answered my own question.[/quote]


sorry i thought u were talkin about the current Ethiop occupation of somalia...

i think u rite, greed is the down fall... somalis chew more than they could swllow

[Somaliweyn]

Shilka,

Weren't you the veteran who was sent to Angola...or am i mistaking you for someone else?



Anyways,

Are you sure Eritrea faced Cubans too? And didn't Soviet Union only sent weapons to Ethiopia during the 77 war?

From my understanding after the Somalis withdrew, Ethiopian derg regime bolstered by this ''victory'' and the new arsenal of Soviet supplied weapons tried to confront the EPLF on a conventional manner. This proved to be costly on the long term, as the EPLF and its junior partner TPLF were battle-hardened guerrilla force. Eventually, economic stagnation and collapse of the communist world contributed greatly to the downfall of Ethiopia.

[Shilka]

Yes, I was in Angola.

And yes, the Soviets and their Cuban slaves aided Ethiopia in both 1977 against Somalia and 1991 against Eritrea. The final war of independence was during the reign of the Soviets.

[galia]

All the somali people with eritrea, i hope they win if meles the snake attacks dem.

God bless eritrea

[Shilka]

The people in Somalia are being battered as we speak, they cannot choose sides while underneath the rock.