UN Chief: ‘Real Opportunity’ to Resolve Ethiopia Conflict

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Wednesday expressed hope that a solution to the more than a year-long conflict in northern Ethiopia that has left millions on the brink of starvation could open the door.

Guterres said in a statement that he spoke on Wednesday with former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, the African Union’s chief envoy to the Horn of Africa. The AU has been leading mediation efforts in the Ethiopian conflict and Obasanjo has been shutting down between the parties since taking office in August, trying to build support for a ceasefire and talks.

“Mr. Obasanjo told me about efforts by the Ethiopian government and the Tigre People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) to move toward a resolution of the violent conflict and expressed optimism that there is now a real opportunity for a political and diplomatic solution to the conflict, “The statement said.

On 24 December, the Ethiopian federal government announced that its defense forces would stop at their current positions, while the Tigreyan forces said they had withdrawn from the neighboring regions of Amhara and Afar and were returning to Tigre.

The UN chief said Obasanjo briefed him about his latest visits to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia and Mekele, the capital of the Tigre region.

“I am delighted that after more than a year of armed conflict that has affected millions of people in Ethiopia and the rest of the region, there is now a clear effort to make peace,” Guterres said.

The United Nations has been warning for months that the intensifying conflict is descending into a full-blown civil war and threatens the stability of the entire Horn of Africa.

Guterres said the ongoing military operations in some parts of the country were posing a challenge to the peace process.

“I reiterate my call for all parties to move swiftly towards ending hostilities as an important step in the right direction for peace-building,” he said at the United Nations for inclusive and Ethiopia-led talks. Offering support of.

He also urged the international community to support peace efforts.

David Satterfield, the United States’ envoy to the new Horn of Africa, is making his first visit to Ethiopia this week. The State Department said she and Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Molly Fey “will encourage government officials to seize the current opening to peace by ending airstrikes and other hostilities, negotiating a ceasefire, releasing all political prisoners”. will restore sustained humanitarian access, and lay the foundation for an inclusive national dialogue.”

Guterres said he was concerned about the humanitarian situation in parts of war-ravaged Ethiopia and called on the parties to allow aid. The United Nations says about 9.4 million people in the three northern regions affected by the conflict are in need of aid.

The United Nations said last week that there had been no human deliveries in the Tigre since December 14. Fuel, which is vital for aiding convoys on the road, is in short supply. No fuel has been supplied to the Tigre since 2 August.

Some UN partners say they will have to suspend their work soon if fuel is not allowed. Fighting and intense airstrikes are also hampering relief efforts and causing civilian casualties.

The Federal Government of Ethiopia has been engaged in armed conflict with TPLF forces in the northern Tigre region since November 2020.