UN calls on Ethiopia, Eritrea to ease tension

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia, Dec 16, 2004 (AP) — The U.N. Thursday urged Ethiopia and Eritrea to ease tensions and curb their tough talk over the simmering and unresolved border dispute that triggered a 2.5-year war six years ago.

The Horn of Africa nations must realize that “they are condemned by history to live together continuously as neighbors,” and must therefore seek a peaceful solution to the conflict, said Legwaila Joseph Legwaila, head of the U.N. mission in both countries.

“I have personally pleaded with the two sides please to lower the temperature to make sure that we concentrate on the search for a peaceful end to this conflict,” Legwaila told reporters.

Eritrea Tuesday said Ethiopia must withdraw its troops from a border town awarded to Eritrea by an international boundary commission to restore peace between the two countries.

Ethiopia must also let the commission demarcate the border between the nations as provided under the terms of a four-year-old peace deal, Eritrea said.

The two nations are deadlocked over the decision of the boundary commission to award the town of Badme to Eritrea – the source of their 1998-2000 border war, which cost each country an estimated $1 million a day and left some 70,000 people dead.

The commission is part of the Permanent Court of Arbitration based in The Hague.

Ethiopia has said it “in principle” accepts the commission’s ruling, but insists it won’t cede any territory.

“Whether they like it or not they are not going to reshuffle themselves to where geography has condemned them to be,” Legwaila said. “I keep hoping that these two countries will come to the realization that the only best way to secure peace for them is to go through with what they started.”