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Ethiopia Accuses Eritrea of Violating Peace Deal
Ethiopia Friday accused Eritrea of violating the peace agreement signed in Algiers, Algeria on December 12, saying Asmara's signing of the peace package is not genuine, but to buy time to heal from crushing defeat at the war fronts.
Addressing a news briefing here, Ethiopian Major General Alemeshet Degefe said his country is still committed to implement each and every provision of the peace accord but his army is ready to deal with any inconvenient situation on the ground.
Alemeshet, also head of the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) Coordination Bureau in Ethiopia, made the remarks one day after the second Military Coordination Commission (MCC) meeting of the UNMEE ended in Nairobi, Kenya, which reportedly failed to resolve the UN peacekeepers redeployment issue because Eritrea rejected the establishment of a temporary security zone 25 kilometers inside Eritrea.
The provision to establish a security zone inside Eritrean territory was agreed upon in the Cessation of Hostilities Agreement signed by Ethiopia and Eritrea in June this year and was fully endorsed by the UNMEE, Alemeshet said.
He said under the deployment plans by Ethiopia and Eritrea, the UNMEE has worked out its own plan, according to which the starting line of the temporary security zone begins from the areas under Ethiopia's administration prior to May 1998 and goes 25 kilometers deep inside Eritrea.
However, Eritrea rejected the UNMEE's plan, thus turning the MCC meeting into failure, Alemeshet said.
He urged the international community to put pressure on Eritrea to return to the negotiating table and accept the temporary security zone proposed by the UNMEE.
Ethiopia and Eritrea engaged in a two-year border conflict since May 1998 because of border disputes. The two countries signed a comprehensive agreement in Algiers, Algeria on December 12 under the auspices of the Organization of African Unity.
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