The highlands of the Horn of Africa have long carried conversations that move slowly, shaped by elevation, memory, and the patience of stone. Borders here are not merely lines but echoes—of wars fought, truces signed, and understandings left unfinished. It is into this quiet, weighted landscape that Ethiopia has spoken again, asking that Eritrean forces withdraw from territory it says is its own.
The request did not arrive with spectacle. It came instead as a firm statement, measured but unambiguous, reflecting a tension that has never fully dissolved since the end of open conflict in the region. Ethiopian officials said Eritrean troops remain present in parts of northern Ethiopia, particularly areas affected by the recent war in Tigray, despite agreements meant to calm the ground and still the movement of armed men.
For many living near these borders, the presence of foreign troops is felt less in announcements than in the rhythms of daily life: checkpoints that appear without explanation, fields left untended, roads traveled with caution. The war that erupted in 2020 reshaped these routines dramatically, drawing Eritrea into the conflict alongside Ethiopian federal forces against the Tigray People’s Liberation Front. Although a ceasefire was reached in late 2022, the landscape has not fully returned to ease.
Ethiopia’s demand points to unresolved elements of that truce. While fighting has largely subsided, international observers and rights groups have repeatedly reported that Eritrean forces remain in certain northern areas. Addis Ababa’s call for an “immediate withdrawal” suggests both impatience and an attempt to reassert sovereignty through words rather than renewed confrontation.
Eritrea has often been silent or reserved in response to such claims, and relations between the two countries have oscillated sharply over decades—from outright war to sudden rapprochement and back into guarded distance. The 2018 peace agreement that once raised hopes of lasting normalization still hovers in the background, its promises neither fully realized nor entirely abandoned.
Diplomatic efforts continue quietly, with regional and international actors urging restraint and dialogue. The stakes are familiar: stability in a region already strained by conflict, displacement, and fragile economies. Each statement, though measured, carries the weight of what might follow if patience thins.
Ethiopian officials said the issue remains under discussion through diplomatic channels and reiterated that their position centers on territorial integrity. No timeline for Eritrean withdrawal has been publicly confirmed, and there has been no indication of immediate military escalation.
For now, the highlands remain still, listening once more to words traveling across old ground.
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