• Prime Minister Meles at the Federation Forum conference in India
• Foreign Minister Seyoum in Russia
• The UN’s new Assistant Secretary –General for Peacekeeping in Addis Ababa
• The International Crisis Group: Inciting war or preventing war?
• A brittle Western ally?
• Somali MPs widen the choice for a new prime minister
• New UN Offices open in Somali Regional State

• Prime Minister Meles Zenawi underscored Ethiopia’s keen interest to play a full role in the Forum of Federations in his speech to the 4th International Conference on Federalism in New Delhi, India. New to the Forum, Ethiopia is keen to draw lessons from other members with rich experience in managing federal government structures. The members of the Forum of Federations, which Ethiopia joined last year, are Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany, India, Mexico, Nigeria and Switzerland, though there are 24 states in the world with federal constitutions. The high level Ethiopian delegation, which was led by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, arrived in New Delhi over the weekend. The aim of the Conference on Federalism is to promote dialogue on the renewal and development of federalism and greater cooperation among practitioners in pursuit of good governance. Prime Minister Meles told the conference that a new democracy was taking hold in Ethiopia following the country’s adoption of federalism as a form of government. Ethiopia’s Constitution guarantees the sovereignty of the peoples of Ethiopia and enshrines the exercise of their right to nurture their languages and cultures and manage their own affairs through their elected representatives. Home to over 80 nations and nationalities with diverse cultures, Ethiopia hoped to gain a great deal from the course of the deliberations at the Conference convened under the theme "Unity under Diversity- Learning from each other". As an expression of its commitment to the success of the Forum, Prime Minister Meles announced Ethiopia's interest to host the 5th International Conference on Federalism. This was unanimously accepted by participants. In a keynote address, India’s Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh said tensions between centralization in certain spheres of governance, and decentralization in others, were the essence of federalism. Managing this, he said was the challenge of federalism. He pointed out that economic development was one of the biggest unifying drivers of the past few decades. Indian External Affairs Minister, Pranab Mukherjee, underlined the urgency of devolving power to the grassroots. Without a sense of participation in governance, he said, there could be no credible empowerment. The Minister said "Minorities have to be assured unequivocally that their identities are not imperiled". About 1000 delegates from 26 countries, practioners of federal democracy at all levels, attended the three-day Conference, jointly organized by the Government of India and the Canada -based Forum of Federations.

• During his visit to India Prime Minister Meles held talks with Dr. Manmohan Singh. In their discussions in New Delhi, Prime Minister Singh expressed the desire of his government to strengthen ties with Ethiopia in the areas of trade and investment. He pledged Indian support to enhance development endeavors in Ethiopia, and help Ethiopia's effort to diversify export goods. Prime Minister Singh invited Prime Minister Meles to visit India for the India-Africa Conference taking place next year and to help boost India-Africa ties. Relations between India and Ethiopia have steadily been gaining momentum; there is a commitment by both parties to enhance cooperation in the spheres of education, trade and investment. Prime Minister Meles particularly commended Indian support for the education sector and for the expansion of the sugar industry, where India has made available US$ 640 million in loans. He assured his Indian counterpart of Ethiopia's resolve to promote Africa-India cooperation. Prime Minister Meles also met other Indian officials and held talks with the President of the Indian National Congress Party, Mrs. Sonya Gandhi.

• This week, Foreign Minister Seyoum was on a working visit to the Russian Federation at the invitation of Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov. Discussions covered a wide range of topics and according to the spokesperson of the Russian government their exchange of views underlined the similarity of their approaches on a broad range of issues, including the promotion of democracy, and strategic stability and the need to counter international terrorism. The need to promote global strategic stability and to increase the coordinating role of the UN in tackling major problems figured significant. The two sides underscored the importance of reinforcing stability as well as advancing political and economic integration in Africa. Minister Seyoum briefed his Russia counterpart in detail about the situation on the ground between Ethiopia and Eritrea, and Somalia. The Russian Foreign Minister assured Minister Seyoum that Russia, as a member of the Security Council would do what it takes to resolve the dispute peacefully. He stressed the need for a political solution to the problems in the Horn of Africa on the basis of international law and co-ordination between the AU and the UN. He commended Ethiopia for its contribution in the AU and to the UN hybrid peacekeeping force for Darfur. Ethiopia has pledged to contribute up to 5,000 troops for this, and Mr. Lavrov said Russia appreciated the fact that Ethiopia was planning to send “a considerable contingent’. Mr. Lavrov and Minister Seyoum also discussed the relations between the Government in Khartoum and the Southern Sudan Government in Juba. They agreed that a key to normalizing the crises in the region lay in going back to the implementation of the existing agreements and, in Darfur, involving all rebel groups in the negotiating process. The two ministers also discussed bilateral co-operation and outlined a number of steps to be taken to encourage a deepening political engagement and increased cooperation in economic and commercial areas.

• The new UN Assistant-Secretary General for Peacekeeping Operations, Mr. Edward Mulet, met with Prime Minister Meles yesterday. Discussions focused on relations between Ethiopia and Eritrea and on the situation in Somalia. Mr. Mulet brought a message from the UN Secretary-General for Prime Minister Meles on the need for restraint; and he expressed the concern of the Secretary-General on developments along the Ethiopian-Eritrean border. The Prime Minister reassured Mr. Mulet that Ethiopia remained committed to the Algiers Agreements and to resolving all differences through peaceful means, including the demarcation of the boundary. The Prime Minister also assured Mr. Mulet of the readiness of Ethiopia to co-operate with the Secretary-General in his efforts to assist Ethiopia and Eritrea in resolving their difficulties and normalizing relations. Mr. Mulet reiterated the UN’s commitment to assist in the implementation of the Algiers Agreements. He expressed his satisfaction on the assurances he had received from the Ethiopian authorities. On Somalia, discussions concentrated on the future role of the UN and on maintaining the current momentum towards peace in the country. Mr. Mulet said that the UN would continue to assist the AU in coordination and in developing contingency plans for a possible UN role in Somalia. Both sides agreed that the international community should take more concrete steps to assist and strengthen the TFG and the political process in Somalia through implementation of the recommendations of the National Reconciliation Congress and enhancing the government’s security capacity. The UN Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, who was on a tour of UN peacekeeping missions in the region, also met with the State Minister for Foreign Affairs and the Chief of Staff.

• The latest report from the ICG, a policy briefing entitled “Ethiopia and Eritrea: Stopping the Slide to War” might actually be mistaken for a propaganda piece from an Eritrean Government-run website. The report contains numerous factual inaccuracies as well as making outrageous allegations against Ethiopia, selectively using past interviews out of context to advance a warped theory that Ethiopia is going to attack Eritrea. If ICG genuinely desires to contribute to the peace and stability of this region, it should stick to facts and facts alone and avoid inflammatory, even hysterical rhetoric. Ethiopia takes great exception to this litany of absurd allegations.

The fact is that Ethiopia has accepted the delimitation decision of the boundary commission without any preconditions whatsoever. This has been quite clear for the last three years and has been publicly acknowledged by the Boundary Commission itself. The reason why ICG wants to doubt this acceptance is clear; it wants to create the myth that Ethiopia is responsible for problems over the border. Ethiopia has also said that it is ready for demarcation in accordance with the delimitation decision of 13 April 2002. In actual fact, it is Ethiopia which has been insisting on demarcation consistent with the Algiers Agreement over the last few years. Eritrea, on the other hand, has been consistently placing obstacles in the way of demarcation. Eritrea apparently prefers to have a boundary dispute rather than a properly demarcated boundary that would ensure sustainable peace for the entire region. The following extract from the latest Report of the United Nations Secretary General (November 1, 2007) lays out the true intentions of the regime in Eritrea: “Since early September, a large number of Eritrean Defense Forces, heavy military equipment and ammunition have been deployed to the Temporary Security Zone and the areas adjacent to it. According to UNMEE estimates, during September and October, Eritrea moved an estimated 1,000 additional troops, 10 heavy machine guns and five truckloads of small arms ammunition into the Zone in Sector Centre, bringing the total number of troops inducted into that sector since December 2006 to more than 2,580 military personnel. On 16 October, UNMEE confirmed the presence of three Eritrean artillery pieces inside the Zone near Tsorena in Sector Centre. As regards Sub sector East, the strength of Eritrean Defense Forces inducted into the Zone in that area is now approximately 600 military personnel. In Sector West, Eritrea inducted approximately 2,025 military personnel into the Zone in October this year, in addition to some 2,000 troops, tanks and artillery, which had been inducted into that Sector in October 2006. Continued Eritrean restrictions have not made it possible for the Mission to monitor all Eritrean troop movements and deployments in the Zone. As underlined in my earlier reports to the Council, the continued presence and deployment of Eritrean Defense Forces and heavy military equipment inside the Zone constitute a direct violation of the Algiers Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities of 18 June 2000.”

It should not come as a surprise that this paragraph of the Report just issued by the Secretary General is almost exactly the same as the one he submitted to the UN Security Council on 18 July 2007. It only demonstrates that Eritrea has continued its flagrant violations of the integrity of the Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) with impunity. Similarly, Eritrea has effectively incapacitated UNMEE, and yet, again, the ICG defends Eritrea's position by blaming others. Eritrea's fundamental violation, repeatedly condemned by the Security Council, is identified as no more than a protest. The ICG moves from simple bias and factual errors to make serious allegations against Ethiopia. Even when it notices Eritrea's involvement in support of international terrorists, it contrives to link this with the border issue and with Ethiopia, indirectly trying to justify such actions.

The most appalling, if absurd, aspect of the ICG’s fictions is that Ethiopia might be contemplating backing a coup attempt against the regime in Eritrea as a prelude for Ethiopian military intervention. ICG's objective for inventing such a ridiculous story can only be a part of its transparent attempt to present the regime in Eritrea as threatened by outside forces. Eritrea's internal matters are the prerogatives of the Eritrean people and they alone can solve their problems. Ethiopia scrupulously abides by this cardinal principle. The most pressing issue at this time is not ill-considered conspiracy theories but facts on the ground. The TSZ has been practically nullified by Eritrea. UNMEE is held hostage by Eritrea. Eritrea’s egregious violations of the Algiers Agreements have to be reversed for the peace process to continue. More significantly, ensuring these conditions are met is a sine qua non for demarcation. These conditions are clearly enshrined in the Algiers Agreements. According to Article 12 of the Algiers Agreement on Cessation of Hostilities, the TSZ is created: " In order to contribute to the reduction of tension and to the establishment of a climate of calm and confidence, as well as to create conditions conducive to a comprehensive and lasting settlement of the conflict through the delimitation and demarcation of the border..." It is quite clear that for both Ethiopia and Eritrea complete restoration of the TSZ and UNMEE’s freedom of movement are not mere extraneous matters. They are fundamental obligations that both Ethiopia and Eritrea voluntarily assumed as the foundation of the entire peace process.

Ultimately, as the UN Security Council and the Secretary General have repeatedly stressed, the responsibility for the implementation of the Algiers Agreements rests with Ethiopia and Eritrea. For its part, Ethiopia remains fully committed to resolving all disputes through peaceful means, including the demarcation of the boundary in accordance with 13 April 2000 Delimitation Decision of the EEBC, the Algiers Agreement and international practice.

• The ICG briefing has also been under criticism from the Eritrea opposition website, Awate.com. In a news analysis entitled ‘Reasons to Doubt Reliability of ICG’s Report’, Awate asks whether the author of this piece might have been Mr. Andeberhan Wolde Giorghis. Mr. Andeberhan is now a senior adviser to the ICG, based in Nairobi. He has held a number of senior positions in the Eritrean government including Commissioner for Coordination for UNMEE, Ambassador to the Congo and Ambassador to Belgium, the EU and other EU states in the 1990s. His most recent post, 2002-2006, was Ambassador to Belgium, the EU, Luxembourg, Portugal and Spain. While Mr. Andeberhan has apparently left Eritrea, like many others in recent years, he has not publicly disassociated himself either from the ruling party, the Peoples Front for Democracy and Justice (PFDJ), nor from the government of President Issayas, or made any effort to join the opposition. According to Awate, Mr. Andeberhan has a history of “alarmism” and there is “every reason to believe the report [might be] written to meet the political objectives of Eritrea’s ruling party.”

• The Economist, last week had a lengthy piece on Ethiopia (A brittle Western ally in the Horn of Africa, 1 November 2007). In some respects much better than the usually, unduly negative reporting by the Economist, it was surprisingly cautious in accepting the reality of IMF and World Bank figures for the economic growth rate. These have averaged 10% over the last four years, and look set to keep this up in the coming year. These figures are also accepted by the Economic Intelligence Unit, and there is no evidence that they should be scaled down in any way. With Foreign Direct Investment rising sharply (it doubled in 2006 to US$ 545 million) Ethiopia is now highly rated as a country in which to invest. The country’s growth has been export-led, and exports income in 2006 for the first time rose over one billion dollars, to US$ 1.2 billion. Exports are expected to show another sharp rise this year. They have also diversified significantly. Coffee now makes up no more than a third of export earnings, and within the last five years, horticulture exports have boomed. Ethiopia is now second only to Kenya in flower exports, with exports increasing 500% last year alone. The sector is attracting investment from a number of foreign countries, including the Netherlands, Germany, India and Israel. Several firms have also relocated from Kenya, the largest exporter of horticultural products in Africa, and from Uganda. The Ethiopian Flower Growers and Exporters Association announced recently that it hopes the sector will generate some US$ 1.4 billion annually within the coming five years. It said that by 2012 it hopes to be employing up to 1.5 million people in all and have 50,000 small-scale farmers involved in the production of flowers, fruit and vegetables. An Ethiopian Commodity Exchange will be launched in December. The application process for the WTO is pushing ahead, though unlikely to be completed before 2010. Substantial progress is also being made in other sectors. Urban development in Addis Ababa, Bahr Dar, Awasa, Mekele and other cities is significant. All are seeing substantial construction. 800 towns and villages are being electrified this year; 6,000 more will be covered by 2010 In three years time, three major hydroelectric projects will be completed: Tekezze (300MW); Gilgel Gibe II (420MW); and Beles (435MW). Current telecommunication plans call for spending US$1.5 billion to provide access for all rural towns this year, as well as providing 2.4 million fixed telephone lines, 2.4 million wire less lines and 8 million mobile phone service lines by 2010. Ethiopia currently has over 90% primary school enrolment, and will have universal primary health care by 2012.

The Economist also had little to say on Ethiopia’s major contribution to peace and stability in our sub region and in our involvement to peacekeeping in other regions of Africa. All this could not have been achieved without some major effort of harmony among its people which has been enhanced by the Federal Constitution of the country. It also seriously underestimated the growing reality of democracy after the multi-party elections in 2005 when the opposition increased its parliamentary representation from 12 to over 170 seats. And it failed to note the recent changes in the National Electoral Board, in parliamentary procedures or the overall progress in lowering societal tensions as a result of the introduction of federalism. Together with this, the five year Plan for Accelerated and Sustainable Development to End Poverty (PASDEP) and the World Bank-supported Agricultural Development-led Industrial Plan (ADLI) are providing an impressive basis on which to build development and democracy.

• In Somalia, this week, the Transitional Federal Parliament endorsed the recommendation of the National Reconciliation Congress to allow non-MPs to hold the post of Prime Minister or become members of the Cabinet. This was proposed by the National Reconciliation Congress in August. Following the resignation of Prime Minister Mohamed Ali Gedi on October 29, Parliament began discussion of the Congress’ recommendations. President Abdullahi Yusuf announced at the end of the Congress that he would accept and accordingly implement all its recommendations. The decision to allow the President to choose a prime minister from outside the ranks of Parliament is expected to offer a wider choice for the establishment of an effective and efficient government. A new prime minister has to be appointed within a month of Prime Minister Gedi’s resignation. The choice is expected to be made from members of the Hawiye clan. In a recent interview on Voice of America, US Assistant Secretary of State for Africa, Jendayi Frazer said that it was important that the new prime minister had the confidence of the international community and of the Somali parliament, but most importantly he should have the confidence of the Somali people. The prime minister she said has to be the key to national reconciliation. She thought President Abdullahi’s choice should fall on someone who is committed to the Transitional Federal Charter, and the transition in 2009, who has capability, political skill and who could demonstrate readiness to work in the interest of the country as a whole not in his personal interest or that of his clan, but in the interest of the Somali people.

• In the Ethiopia’s Somali Regional State, UN agencies have begun to deploy staff in the new UN offices in Kebridahar and Degehabur. These include the World Food Programme, the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the Food and Agricultural Organization. Around a dozen NGOs have also been accredited to work in the zones of Degehabur, Gode, Fik, Warder and Korahe. This follows the agreement between the Government and the UN last month on measures to ensure that aid reached those in need in the region. The UN and the Disaster Preparedness and Prevention Agency (DPPA) have also decided to set up joint support centers in areas of need to facilitate the logistics of delivering food, medicine veterinary services and other support. 190 food distribution points have been agreed. These moves follow a UN exploratory mission to the Somali Regional State in early October which reported on a need for increased aid to the region, to ensure a free flow of commercial and humanitarian food supplies and for greater access for both government and humanitarian service providers. A statement by the DPPA this week said that 11,000 quintals of grain had already been distributed to Fik and Korahe zones last week, and a similar amount was currently being deployed. The Ministry of Defense was providing extra heavy duty trucks to help in the deliveries.

• The Ministry of Foreign Affairs would like to express its deep sorrow by the death of Professor Kinfe Abraham, President of the Ethiopian International Institute for Peace and Development and well known academic and diplomat. Professor Kinfe passed away on November 8, 2007 after suffering a stroke. The Ministry offers its sincere condolences to his family, friends and colleagues for this very great loss.