PRESS CONFERENCE BY ERITREA

Press Briefing

PRESS CONFERENCE BY ERITREA

An official statement explaining Eritrea's acceptance of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) proposal for an immediate cessation of hostilities between Ethiopia and Eritrea has been sent to the organization, the Eritrean Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Haile Menkerios, told correspondents at a Headquarters press conference on Friday. The acceptance has been formerly communicated to the OAU through a letter from the Eritrean Foreign Minister to the OAU's Special Envoy.

He said that the proposal, which had the full backing of the OAU's partners, the European Union and the United States, was presented to the Eritrean and Ethiopian parties involved in the proximity talks in Algiers on Friday. In addition to an immediate cessation of hostilities, the proposal also provided for the withdrawal of Ethiopian troops from Eritrea territory after the early deployment of a peacekeeping mission deployed by the United Nations under the auspices of the OAU. The mandate of the peacekeeping mission extends until the demarcation of the border between the two countries.

He said that Eritrea had earlier redeployed its troops to the position they held before the outbreak of the conflict and from additional areas based on an appeal from the OAU. At the proximity talks, Eritrea had asked that Ethiopia do the same. Instead, Ethiopia had presented preconditions for redeployment, namely, the provision by the international community of security guarantees. Eritrea had rejected the precondition as preposterous and unjustified and an effort by Ethiopia to torpedo the talks, but nonetheless responded positively to the appeal of the OAU and its partners to go the extra mile for peace.

Noting that Eritrea had gone beyond fulfilling its commitments to give peace a chance, he said his country had called on the international community to take strong action against Ethiopia in the event that it rejected the OAU proposal, or pretended to accept it while continuing its war against Eritrea. The proposal and Eritrea's acceptance were positive developments in the direction of peace.

"We expect Ethiopia's acceptance so that this very sad conflict could be ended peacefully”, he said. "We call on the international community to do anything, everything it can to ensure that this peace agreement is accepted by both and that a peaceful conclusion to this very sad conflict is assured."

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