Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has insisted that his landlocked country must secure access to the Red Sea, even as neighbouring states say the sea's governance belongs to the countries on its shores. Abiy made the demand on Monday in a speech to Parliament as he was sworn in for a new five-year term, after the legislature re-elected him following June's general election. His Prosperity Party won 438 of 547 seats in that vote.
"Based on the principle of give and take, we will work diligently to ensure that Ethiopia has an outlet to the sea," Abiy said, describing access as critical to Ethiopia's "civilisation". Ethiopia lost its direct coastline in 1993, when Eritrea, formerly an Ethiopian region, became independent.
The speech came amid renewed fighting in the northern Tigray region. Clashes between federal forces and the Tigray People's Liberation Front, a rebel force, erupted on September 23, raising fears of a return to the civil war of 2020-2022. Reports say a drone strike on Monday killed several people in a displacement camp in Tigray. Government-aligned forces entered the regional capital, Mekelle, in early October. Abiy told lawmakers the army would act "pre-emptively and reactively" and that Ethiopia would have air superiority. He also urged fighters to "choose the path of peace" and join a national reconciliation process. Ethiopia is also confronting a newly formed armed group, the Ethiopian Peoples' Forces Alliance for Survival, which is seeking to topple the government.
Regional tensions are rising in parallel. Addis Ababa accuses Eritrea, Egypt and Sudan of backing opposition forces, and on Thursday it announced the closure of its embassy in Eritrea. Eritrea, for its part, accuses Ethiopia of seeking sea access through its territory. A separate dispute over Ethiopia's Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam on the Nile has strained ties with Egypt and Sudan, which depend on the river for water.
On Sunday, Egypt, Eritrea, Sudan and Somalia, four of the five states bordering the Red Sea, met in Egypt's New Alamein. They said Red Sea governance was the exclusive responsibility of its coastal states and rejected actions that could affect Egyptian and Sudanese use of Nile waters. Ethiopia's Foreign Ministry responded that any discussion must account for the country's "legitimate interests and enduring connection" to the sea.
Somalia struck a more conciliatory note. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, who attended the Egypt meeting, congratulated Abiy and said he looked forward to strengthening ties. He has said Somalia does not object to Ethiopian access through its territory, provided the two countries negotiate formally. Leaders including Burundi's president and the African Union Commission chair also sent congratulations.
The issue matters because Ethiopia, one of Africa's most populous nations, is pursuing a maritime outlet while facing internal conflict and strained relations with several neighbours. Together these could widen instability across the Horn of Africa.