Ethiopian crisis: US, AU envoys return to Ethiopia to ramp up diplomatic efforts to end war
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia (PANA) - The United States and African Union (AU) envoys for the Horn of Africa have returned to Ethiopia to ramp up diplomatic efforts to end the war in the country.
The State Department said in a statement that Special Envoy for the Horn of Africa Jeffrey Feltman, who arrived in Thursday, will meet with senior government officials, African Union representatives, and other international partners "to discuss opportunities that advance a negotiated and sustainable cessation of hostilities and an end to the conflict" during his three-day visit that ends on Saturday.
The statement said the United States remains committed to promoting a peaceful and prosperous Ethiopia and ensuring that life-saving humanitarian aid reaches all Ethiopians in need.
The Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Mr. Dina Mufti, said the AU’s special envoy for the Horn of Africa, former president of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo, is undertaking a "fact finding mission" to find out the position of the different sides to the conflict.
Ethiopian news outlet, Addis Standard, quoted Dina as saying at a news briefing in Addis Ababa on Thursday that “We’re expecting that he will disclose his investigation in the near future.”
The state-owned Ethiopian News Agency (ENA) also reported that Mr. Feltman held discussions with Ethiopia's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Demeke Mekonnen on Thursday.
ENA said Mr. Demeke told Mr. Feltman that humanitarian assistance flights had been allowed to enter Kombolcha and Lalibela while 369 trucks carrying aid were also permitted to enter Tigray.
They also discussed the situation of American citizens in various parts of Ethiopia. The US Embassy in Addis Ababa has issued an alert asking its citizens to leave the country now by commercial flights.
Mr. Demeke said the rebel Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF) is still carrying out attacks in Afar and Amhara regions, causing severe human and economic as well as psychological damages and called for pressure to be exerted on the group to leave the two regions.
The African Union and US are leading diplomatic efforts to silence the guns in Ethiopia that has seen thousands of people killed, infrastructure destroyed and triggered a huge humanitarian crisis with tens of thousands on the brink of famine.
-0- PANA MA 19Nov2021
