Ethiopia PM and UAE Crown Prince discuss Tigray rebellion
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The Arab Weekly
- Posted On 01-02-2022, 05:37AM
DUBAI — The rebellion in Ethiopia's Tigray province has featured in talks between Abu Dhabi's Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed who is on a state visit to the UAE.
Sheik Mohammed was reported by the Emirates news agency WAM as stressing that there was a close link between the security and stability of the Arabian Peninsula and the Red Sea region on the one hand and the security of the Horn of Africa on the other. This, he said, called for a unified and effective regional stance against security threats.
The UAE, along with China and Turkey is reported to have supplied Addis Ababa with drones, which have apparently tipped the balance of the conflict in favour of the Ethiopian armed forces.
The Tigray war has been raging since November 2020. The fighting has shifted in recent weeks, with the Tigrayan forces retreating into their region after attempting to advance on the capital, Addis Ababa. Meanwhile, Ethiopia’s military is saying it would not pursue them further. This has opened the way for fresh mediation efforts by the United States and the African Union, with humanitarian access a key goal.
Ethiopia’s government has sought to restrict reporting on the war and detained some journalists under the state of emergency, including a video freelancer accredited to The Associated Press, Amir Aman Kiyaro.
The Ethiopian premier was greeted on the tarmac by Sheikh Mohammed. They inspected an honour guard and then went on to meetings at the Qasr Al Watan.
WAM reported that the two leaders discussed "cooperation, joint projects and ways to enhance ties between the UAE and Ethiopia in various fields to advance their overall development efforts and interests.”
