An International Meeting focusing on Ethiopia has called on the warring parties in the Horn of Africa nation to sign a ceasefire agreement.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken hosted a meeting to discuss the situation in Ethiopia with African Union Envoy Olusegun Obasanjo, IGAD Chairman and Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok, EU High Representative Josep Borrell, UK Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss, German Foreign Minister Niels Annen, and French Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Frederic Clavier.
The Ethiopian government troops & officials will be forcing to retreat as usual, why Eth. govern don’t want to do a ceasefire agreement & work on a political solution to the Tigray crisis. Ethiopia forces strike Tigray rebels in 'massive' move https://t.co/BRaGuO3Tcx via @yahoosg
— Abeba Kidanemariam (@AKidanemariam) October 9, 2021
"The United States, the European Union, France, Germany, and the United Kingdom urged the parties to immediately end abuses and enter into negotiations toward a ceasefire to lay the foundation for a broader and inclusive dialogue to restore peace in Ethiopia and preserve the unity of the Ethiopian state," reads a statement issued after the meeting.
The participants further called on the warring parties to adhere to international law and allow unhindered delivery of humanitarian assistance to all who are suffering in Ethiopia.
On Tuesday, Addis Ababa released a statement calling for humanitarian support to civilians in north Wollo and Gondar, two areas of the Amhara region under the control of the TPLF combatants.
Aid groups reached more than 444,000 people with food assistance in Amhara and about 72,000 displaced people in Afar since early August.
The Ethiopian government expelled seven UN officials, including senior humanitarian officials.
The @UN and almost every single foreign government concerned with Ethiopia has called for a ceasefire. But what does this actually mean?
— World Peace Foundation (@WorldPeaceFdtn) September 22, 2021
Mulugeta Berhe explores some of the complexities of a ceasefire agreement.https://t.co/YruCTJRgt5
The International High-Level Meeting welcomed the close regional coordination between the African Union and IGAD to end the war and bring the parties to reach a peaceful resolution of the crisis.
Addis Ababa had declined an initiative by the IGAD Chair Hamdok pointing to the ongoing border dispute with Sudan.
The IGAD picked President Salva Kiir of South Sudan to mediate the one-year conflict in Ethiopia.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
