LDN - Other News

Ethiopian and Tigray forces launch hotline as new peace talks begin

[November 07, 2022] By Hereward Holland and Tommy Wilkes

NAIROBI (Reuters) -The Ethiopian government and Tigrayan forces have established a telephone hotline to help a maintain a ceasefire struck last week, and both sides met in Kenya on Monday for a new round of talks on implementing the truce.

Ethiopia's government and regional forces from Tigray agreed last Wednesday to cease hostilities after talks mediated by the African Union (AU), a diplomatic breakthrough two years into a war that has killed thousands and displaced millions.

The truce has raised hopes humanitarian aid can start moving back into a region where hundreds of thousands face famine.

Representatives of Ethiopia's military and government and forces from Tigray are in the Kenyan capital Nairobi to discuss how to begin implementing the ceasefire, with the talks set to last three or four days.

"The first sign for me of the progress after the signing of the agreement is the fact that between them they have exchanged a hotline," AU chief mediator Olusegun Obasanjo told a news conference in Nairobi.

According to an official familiar with the talks, the hotline will address any flare-up in fighting and coordinate disengagements, with both sides recognising "the challenge of fully communicating with all their units to stop fighting".

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's national security adviser and lead negotiator, Redwan Hussien, said on Twitter that the Nairobi meetings would ensure "safety & expedites humanitarian flow to areas hitherto inaccessible".

Getachew Reda, spokesman for the Tigray authorities, said the talks were to figure out implementation of the agreement. "We will honour the commitments we have made," Getachew told media in Nairobi.

In a statement on Monday, the AU said it expected the outcomes of the talks to "include modalities for silencing the guns, humanitarian access and the restoration of services in the Tigray region".

30-DAY DISARMAMENT

Making the ceasefire stick may be challenging given concerns about some skirmishes on the ground since the truce, unsettled political and territorial disputes and an ambitious disarmament timeline.

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Former Nigerian president and African Union envoy Olesegun Obasanjo arrives for the signing of the AU-led negotiations to resolve the conflict in northern Ethiopia, in Pretoria , South Africa, November 2, 2022.

The Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the party that dominates the region, pledged to disarm its fighters fully within 30 days under the agreement.

Officials this week also want to agree membership of an African Union-led panel of experts for monitoring, verification and compliance of the ceasefire, the source familiar with the talks said.

Former Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta, co-mediator at the talks, said he hoped the parties would work together to create a permanent resolution of the conflict.

"We started in Pretoria, we are inching our way closer. We are now in Nairobi, we are very hopeful next time we will be in Mekelle for our (next) meeting and ultimately celebrate together in Addis Ababa," Kenyatta said, referring to the capitals of South Africa, the Tigray region and Ethiopia respectively.

The role of Eritrea, which has not participated in the talks, remains concerning, analysts say. Its troops have fought in the conflict on the side of the Ethiopian army.

The ceasefire agreement says Ethiopia's army will safeguard the country against "foreign incursion" but analysts are worried about whether Eritrea - the TPLF's sworn enemy - will listen.

Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh declined to comment on the agreement. Eritrean Information Minister Yemane Gebremeskel could not immediately be reached for comment.

(Reporting by Hereward Holland and Tommy Reggiori WilkesAdditional reporting by George Obulutsa and Ayenat MersieEditing by James Macharia Chege, Angus MacSwan and Mark Heinrich)

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