Ethiopia's Quest For Red Sea Access Existential Necessity Forging Regional Dividends

By Yordanos D.

As Africa’s second most populous nation and a rapidly growing economy, Ethiopia's pursuit of regaining Red Sea Access is not merely a political posturing but a matter of survival. The quest for Ethiopia to secure access to the Red Sea is essential for its economic trajectory, regional cooperation and development as well as durable peace. To this end, securing access to the Red Sea is fundamentally an issue of survival that the country seeks to achieve based on mutual benefits and peacefully.

Ethiopia's pursuit of Red Sea access is, therefore, an over-due national aspiration.

According a recent clarification Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed gave on Red Sea to members of the parliament: “A population of over 120 million people cannot remain landlocked. A generation of today will not bequeath a geographically imprisoned nation to posterity.”

Regaining Assab Port based on peaceful negotiation is imperative for survival and sustainable development. Ethiopia lost Assab Port, with no legal background. It is therefore fitting to reclaim the Red Sea access.

Since Eritrea’s secession, Ethiopia has been landlocked. However, the manner in which Ethiopia lost its sea access was both illegal and unjust, without the consent of the Ethiopian people, a cabinet decision, or a parliament’s approval. And this has created immense economic burden on the country.

For centuries, Ethiopia had maintained direct access to the Red Sea through the ports of Massawa and Assab, vital gateways linking the country to global trade routes. The loss of the Assab port deprived the country of its direct access to the Red Sea for the first time in its history. Hence, Ethiopia’s quest to secure access to the Red Sea has legal, historical, geographical, and economic backgrounds.

According to available data, the Red Sea carries a significant percent of the global trade and global oil shipments. Several developed countries have established military bases along the Red Sea given its geopolitical significance. Ethiopia, only few kilometers away from the Sea cannot remain landlocked by any standard. 

Given its economic, historical, natural and legal implications, Ethiopia needs to regain the Red Sea through peaceful negotiation and cooperation.

The growing economy and population size as well as emerging trends attached to the geopolitics, require Ethiopia to secure maritime access and pursue all opportunities for shared aspiration. Ethiopia advances peace and stability, development and cooperation in the Horn Africa. Its quest for access to the Red Sea should be therefore considered as good opportunity for coastal countries too. The dividends of Ethiopia's securing of Red Sea access  are tremendous— foster trust, collaboration, peace and stability among nations directly engaged and beyond. It is widely accepted that Ethiopia has been a stabilizing nation in the Horn of Africa.

The country reiterates cooperation, not confrontation. However, there are destabilizing states in the region. It is no secret that Egypt has been brewing conspiracies and anti-Ethiopian sentiments for centuries. Needless to mention, Egypt has playing destructive role to undermine Ethiopia not to utilize the resources of Abay River on its borders. Even now, it is parroting provocative propaganda against Ethiopia, saying it does not have the right to utilize access to the Red Sea.

 It is a pity that Eritrea has accepted the belligerent mission of Egypt against Ethiopia. This was more profoundly destructive when Isaias Afwerki rejected the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD) last year. This is evident that Isaias Afwerki is serving the interest of Egypt, not Eritrea.

GERD is a flagship project that Ethiopians have realized through sacrifice. It is a driver for regional integration that Africans are proud of. Eritrea is in charge of Egypt’s destructive policy against Ethiopia in particular and in the entire region in general.

This was once revealed by Isaias Afwerki himself in Tigrigna language shortly after Eritrea’s independence. He said: “Egypt’s support to Eritrea was not driven by concern for the Eritrean people, but rather by a broader strategy to weaken Ethiopia, a key upper Nile basin country. Egypt’s long-term policy has centered on controlling the waters of the Nile by repeatedly seeking to undermine the stability of upstream nations, reiterating that political instability would afford Egypt greater leverage over the Nile’s waters.”

Hence, Egypt and Eritrea are working to destabilize Ethiopia and the entire region. Egypt intervened in Sudan, inflaming the civil war for nearly two years. Both Egypt and Eritrea have exerted considerable effort to escalate conflicts in the Horn of Africa.

Regarding Ethiopia--the whole world knows its position on Horn of Africa. The nation has consistently maintained a policy centered on a win-win approach. It gives utmost priority to its neighbors, pursuing non-interference, mutual respect, cooperation, peace and stability.

Reaffirming the government’s commitment to mutual benefits, Prime Minister Abiy stated that Ethiopia seeks to secure access to the Red Sea through negotiation and mutual understanding, emphasizing that Ethiopia’s development would also benefit neighboring countries, reinforcing the importance of regional cooperation. The country has made tangible achievements in undertaking infrastructure projects with significant regional importance such as roads, railway and power connectivity. 

Against all these backgrounds, Ethiopia views its maritime access to Red Sea as a collective opportunity. With extensive coastline within its neighbor, the nation views immense opportunities for trade and cooperation that can uplift not only Ethiopia but also the entire region. More than three decades ago, the country had access to two ports for a population of 46 million and an economy worth 13 billion USD. Today, Ethiopia’s economy is expanding more than twentyfold. The geopolitical situation in the Horn of Africa has changed.

 “We ask all countries to understand the legitimate rights of the Ethiopian people to secure access to the Red Sea, whose population continues to grow rapidly. Ethiopia has made clear that its pursuit of access to the Red Sea will be achieved through peaceful, legal, and cooperative means. Ethiopia’s existence is tied to the Red Sea,” Prime Minister Abiy reiterated.

By leveraging its economic potential and regional partnerships, Ethiopia pursues mutually beneficial arrangements that promote durable peace and prosperity to the region.

Note: The views expressed in this op-ed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official stance or policy of ENA.