Statement
Ethiopia Is Intent on Waging War: Peace Was Never On Its Agenda

Ethiopia's diplomatic offensive in the past months was anchored in one theme: that it will not contemplate peace unless and until the OAU Framework is accepted by Eritrea.

Eritrea's acceptance of the OAU framework has now exposed Ethiopia's bluff. Indeed, Ethiopia can no longer conceal its territorial ambitions and other larger objectives behind the facade of a framework "which it has accepted in good faith but that remains rejected by Eritrea."

The UN Security Council, the OAU High-Level Delegation, and the European Union, among others, have all issued statements this week urging both sides to cease hostilities immediately and unconditionally. But Ethiopia refuses to heed these calls.

Ethiopia has yesterday lashed out at the United Nations, arrogantly stating that it will not accept UN Security Council Resolution 1227. It particularly took offense at Article 2 of the resolution that "demands an immediate halt to the hostilities, in particular the use of air strikes" and at Article 7 which "strongly urges all states to end immediately all sales of arms and munitions to Ethiopia and Eritrea." Ethiopia's underlying motive in rejecting these articles is too transparent to merit elaboration.

Ethiopia's larger design on Eritrea is coming to the surface in various forms. The regime has now begun to sing a new tune, calling for the "overthrow of the Eritrean government" which it dubs as a "threat to the region." This was the gist of the official statement that the regime issued yesterday.

Ethiopia's territorial ambitions on Eritrea have been an open secret for a long time now. In June last year, Ethiopia's Deputy Foreign Minister openly boasted that the Addis Abeba regime will capture the Eritrean port of Assab "within a week." Ethiopia has amassed thousands of heavily armed troops on the Burie front, 70 kms. from Assab, and hundreds of kilometers away from the "disputed Badme area." The Ethiopian regime recently bombed, without success, the airport of Assab and attempted to destroy the water reservoir supplying the port city.

Confirming its larger designs on Eritrea, the Ethiopian regime informed its troops on the eve of the large-scale offensive that it launched on February 6, that the objective was to take Eritrea's capital, Asmara; overthrow the present government; and install a "transitional government" whose "Charter" has already been drawn up in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Abeba.

Signs of Ethiopia's hidden agenda against Eritrea have been evident for quite a long time now:
* In July 1997, Ethiopia occupied by force, with the use of over 1,000 troops, the Adi Murug area in eastern Eritrea and escalated its incursions on the Badme area, which it had started much earlier;
* In October 1997, Ethiopia published a new map of the northern region of Tigray which incorporated large areas of Eritrea;
* In May 1998, Ethiopia provoked a series of clashes in the Badme area when its troops first attacked a small Eritrean unit, killing most of its members;
* Finally, on May 13, 1998, Ethiopia's "Parliament" declared war on Eritrea. This declaration was executed through ground attacks that Ethiopia launched in late May and early June last year on all three fronts as well as the first air bombing of Asmara on June 5. And, since February 6 this year, and at a time when there was visible progress in the peace efforts, Ethiopia began to unleash the on-going large-scale offensives.

Ethiopia has violated fundamental principles of international law and accepted conventions and norms of civilized behavior in conducting its war of aggression. Indeed, it has:
* repeatedly resorted to the use of force, including the unleashing of the current large-scale offensive;
* violated international human rights conventions in its campaign of "ethnic cleansing" of Eritreans;
* bombing civilians and economic targets;
* violated the US-brokered moratorium on air strikes without serving advance notice to the party concerned;
* employed mercenaries in its Air Force;
* broken into the premises of the Eritrean Embassy residence in Addis Abeba.

All these facts illustrate one thing. Ethiopia may have succeeded to smokescreen its real intentions in the past. Many may have thought that this was a simple border dispute that has gone beyond proportions. But now, it is becoming clearer that Ethiopia's agenda encompasses expansionist territorial ambition on its sovereign neighbor and subversion of its government. This can only be a recipe for regional instability and insecurity.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Asmara, 2 March 1999