Foreign policy of Ethiopia

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
States with diplomatic missions in Ethiopia

The foreign policy of Ethiopia is shaped by the difficult conditions and often unclear borders between the regional power Ethiopia and most of its African neighbors.

History of external relations

Ethiopia is a state that has existed for thousands of years, the Abyssinia Empire was until its end as the oldest still existing state in the world. In 1493 the Portuguese Pedro de Covilhão reached the court of the emperor ( Negus ). He was supposed to promote a Portuguese-Ethiopian alliance, as Portugal began to build up its colonial rule on the coastal areas of the Indian Ocean at this time. In 1543, Portuguese auxiliaries under the son of Vasco da Gama , Cristóvão da Gama , supported the Ethiopians on the Negus' appeal for help against the troops of the Sultanate of Adal under Ahmed Graññ , who they gave a crushing defeat. However, the Portuguese strategy of converting the entire country to the Catholic faith failed. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church was only briefly with the Roman Catholic Church of the Papal States in union.

During the European race for Africa , when numerous European countries wanted to colonize the African peoples, Ethiopia stood firm and tried rather to implement its own imperialist plans. Under Emperor Theodor II there was a confrontation with the English. This also opposed the Turkish colonialism, which has already attached the coastal areas to the Ottoman Empire . Due to a diplomatic conflict with Great Britain, he took all Europeans in his country hostage from 1865. This led to the British military expedition to Ethiopia of 1868 and the liberation of the prisoners.

Emperor John IV, however, had helped the British and Egyptians evacuate their garrisons on the Sudanese-Ethiopian border during the Mahdi uprising. Under Emperor Menelik II, however, the implementation of the Amharic expansion plans against the kingdoms of the Oromo in the south, the Gurage in the southwest, against Awsa , the state of the Afar in the northeast, and against the Somali in the east. Even the mighty "God King" of Kaffa had to bow to the expansionist urge of the Ethiopian empire.

On March 7, 1905, after Ethiopia came into contact with French colonial rulers on the Djiboutian coast and Italian colonial rulers on the Somali coast, a German delegation led by Friedrich Rosen and Emperor Menelik concluded a friendship and trade treaty with the German Empire . In some cases, European officials were even accepted into the government. On September 28, 1923, Ethiopia became a member of the League of Nations .

Basics of foreign policy

Ethiopia is considered a regional power in the Horn of Africa . It won the Eritrean-Ethiopian border war from 1998 to 2000 and intervened several times in the civil war in Somalia . The country also has the support of the USA . Ethiopia itself wants to live in security and maintain stability in the region, while at the same time asserting its own interests. Relations with the neighboring countries in the Horn of Africa and with the international donor countries, especially the USA and the EU member states, have priority.

Ethiopia plays an active role u. a. in the East African regional organization IGAD (Inter-Governmental Authority on Development), where it has been chairing since June 2008, and in the African Union and in NEPAD (New Partnership for African Development). Ethiopia is also playing an increasingly prominent role across the region. Prime Minister Meles coordinated the African stance on environmental issues and represented it at the environmental summit in Copenhagen (November 2009).

The Ethiopian security and defense policy is mostly defensive, but continues to adhere to the goal of having sufficiently strong armed forces. The armed forces are currently in a state of upheaval. The officially 300,000 manpower in the war against Eritrea has already been reduced to around 130,000. At the same time, the formation of reserve forces began. Ethiopia sent troops for the UN operations in Burundi and Liberia and made soldiers and police officers available for the UN and AU (UNAMID) peacekeeping mission in Darfur.

Relations with neighboring states

Ethiopia regards some of its neighboring states as trouble spots from which separatist, terrorist and Islamist currents enter the regions of Ethiopia. Relations with the other neighboring states are businesslike.

Relationship with Djibouti

Djibouti has been Ethiopia's most important port access since Eritrea denied Ethiopia access to its ports in 2000. Ethiopia is connected to the port of Djibouti by the railway line from Addis Ababa to Djibouti .

Relationship with Eritrea

Relations with the former province of Eritrea have been a determining element of the country's foreign relations since it became independent from Ethiopia in 1993. The relations that were initially good after the joint struggle of the two liberation movements against the regime of the Labor Party of Ethiopia of Mengistu Haile Mariam in 1991 worsened increasingly after independence.

With the Eritrean attack on Badme in 1998, a bloody border war began with around 100,000 dead, which was ended by the armistice and the Algiers peace treaty in 2000. To secure the ceasefire, the United Nations stationed a peacekeeping force (UNMEE Mission of the United Nations in Ethiopia and Eritrea) in a 25-kilometer-deep border strip on Eritrean territory until the disputed border was determined and marked by the border commission EEBC formed by both sides .

The decision of the Boundary Commission, which, according to the parties' agreement, should be final and binding, was announced on April 13, 2002 (delimitation, i.e. the legal definition of the boundary by 146 geographical coordinates by the EEBC at the end of November 2007). Ethiopia is not ready to undertake the physical demarcation of the border and continues to demand a comprehensive political dialogue to implement this decision. Eritrea rejects this and insists on a technical implementation of demarcation. The UNMEE mandate was terminated without replacement by the UN Security Council on July 31, 2008, as both Ethiopia and Eritrea did not agree to a continuation. The decision of the “Eritrea-Ethiopian Claims Commission” for compensation for war damage of August 17, 2009, which awards Ethiopia a slightly higher compensation (176.1 million US dollars compared to 161.5 million US dollars for Eritrea), will also be not accepted.

Against this background, the African Union's clear criticism of Eritrea, most recently at the AU summit in Sirte (July 1 to 3, 2009), as well as the sanctions decision of the United Nations Security Council of December 23, 2009, was received with clear satisfaction. Relationships remain tense, but there are no signs of deterioration.

Relationship with Somalia

Relations with Somalia are against the background of the largely uncontrolled border between the Somali region of Ethiopia and Somalia, the experience of the Ogaden War of 1977/78 and the fear of an Islamist-fundamentalist orientation in Somalia with corresponding repercussions on Ethiopia and the continued actions of armed opposition groups (OLF, ONLF) seen from Somali territory. After the Union of Islamic Courts of Justice was about to overturn the internationally recognized Somali transitional government at the end of 2006, Ethiopia saw its security interests at risk and intervened militarily in Somalia with the consent of the transitional government.

After brief skirmishes, the courts of justice were driven out of central and southern Somalia, with the result that the transitional government was able to take its seat in Mogadishu since January 2007. Ethiopia withdrew its troops in January 2009 and declared its readiness to cooperate with the new Somali government under Sheikh Sharif. Problems in setting up the AU peace mission in Somalia (AMISOM) are caused by the financial support of AMISOM by the international donor community and the insufficient willingness of African states to provide troop contingents (so far Uganda and Burundi are each with five battalions on site, a total of 5100 soldiers ).

Ethiopia has currently taken in around 60,000 refugees from the Mogadishu region. The monthly inflow is currently around 1700 refugees per month (with an upward trend), whose main motive is to flee from the Islamic fundamentalist influence and the associated insecurity. Against this background, Ethiopia has a particular interest in stability in Somalia.

Relationship with Sudan

With regard to Sudan, Ethiopia is trying to improve relations. Since the end of 1999, this has led to a compensation which also has an impact in the economic area (trade relations, import of fuel, use of the port of Port Sudan, improvement of the road connection) and border demarcation. In connection with the implementation of the “Comprehensive Peace Agreement”, Ethiopia is clearly committed to further unification of Sudan after the 2010 referendum, but is already preparing for other scenarios. Here, too, Ethiopia plays a very active role as IGAD chairmanship and is particularly urging that the "post referendum modalities" be established in good time, which may be essential for an orderly secession of South Sudan .

Relationship with Kenya

Relations with its southern neighbor Kenya are good despite occasional cross-border disputes within the local ethnic groups.

Relations with Europe

Ethiopia is involved in the European Union's cooperation with the African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries and - following the Yaoundé and Lomé agreements - also signed the Cotonou Agreement of June 23, 2000. Under this agreement, Ethiopia is the largest recipient of aid. For the years 2008 to 2013, a total of 644 million euros (German share: 20.5 percent) are earmarked under the Tenth European Development Fund, which will benefit the areas of economic infrastructure, food security and macroeconomic support, among other things.

EU Development Commissioner Andris Piebalgs paid a visit to Ethiopia from May 6-8, 2010, during which he signed four financing agreements with Ethiopia, providing Ethiopia with € 27.8 million in support for development projects in the following areas: Commit agriculture, justice and gender equality.

By sending an election observer mission, the European Union is also playing a special role in the orderly process and the legitimacy of the Ethiopian elections due for May 2010. The mission is funded by the EU with eight million euros and has been commissioned to continue its observation in the phase immediately following the election.

In 2008, Ethiopia received almost 870 million euros in support from the EU and its member states, making it the EU's most important partner in sub-Saharan Africa in the field of development cooperation.

Relationship with Italy

Relations with Italy are of a special nature. The fascist kingdom of Italy was militarily active in Ethiopia.

Relationship with Portugal

Today's Ethiopian-Portuguese relations are normally developed, but the presence of Portugal played a special role in the history of Ethiopia. The Portuguese military expedition in Ethiopia under Cristóvão da Gama was of decisive importance for the suppression of Islam (finally with the Battle of Wayna Daga in 1543) and thus the preservation of Christian Ethiopia . A Portuguese community then developed in the country, which influenced the technical, cultural and theological development of Ethiopia. Their increasing Catholic proselytizing led to a bloody civil war in the 17th century and the end of the Portuguese presence in the country.

Relationship with Turkey

Diplomatic relations between Ethiopia and Turkey have existed for centuries. In the past, however, both countries, the Abyssinian Empire and the Ottoman Empire , fought various wars. The Ottoman army conquered the coastal areas of the empire in the 16th century and incorporated them as Habeş Eyaleti .

Relations later became more peaceful, however, with the Ottoman Empire opening an honorary consulate in the historic city of Harar and a consulate general in the capital Addis Ababa from 1910 to 1912 . In 1925, the Republic of Turkey opened an embassy in Addis Ababa.

Ethiopia opened an embassy in the Turkish capital Ankara in 1959, but had to close it again in 1976 because of economic obstacles. She reopened it in 2006.

Relations with Asia

China and India are also becoming increasingly important. The country is also looking for good relations with the Arab states as well as Turkey, Russia and Japan.

Memberships in organizations

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Chris Proutky, Empress Taytu and Menelik II , Trenton: The Red Sea Press, 1986, p247-256 (English)
  2. ↑ Bahru Zewde, A History of Modern Ethiopia , second edition, Oxford: James Currey, 2001 (English)
       Sven Rubenson, The Survival of Ethiopian Independence , Hollywood: Tsehai, 1991 (English)
  3. ^ Website of the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry: Bilateral Relations ( Memento of June 8, 2003 in the Internet Archive )

literature

Web links