Eritrea/Ethiopia: It�s my way or East Africa is on fire, Ethiopia

24 Dec 2004, EDNews - Recognizing that its recent manipulations to destroy the Algiers peace accord have failed to win the support of major powers, or any other power for that mater, Ethiopia today threatened to destabilize the whole East Africa should its 5-point sham plan for peace with Eritrea fail. In a report posted at the Ethiopian new agency ENA website, the statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia said: �. refraining to accept the new peace proposal on the part of the Eritrean government would lead the two countries to unwanted situations which it said would also be a threat to the peace and stability of east Africa�. And that is coming from a country that owes every aspect of its existence as a nation to the massive patronage of the international community. Following is the text of the report:

Addis Ababa, 24 Dec 2004: The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stressed the need that Eritreans in and out of the country should make pressure on their government to accept Ethiopia's five-point new peace initiative proposed by the Ethiopian government to resolve the Ethiopian-Eritrean border dispute.

In its news letter issued in December 2004, the ministry said the Eritrean government should understand that the border dispute between the two countries would only be solved through peaceful means. It said the new peace proposal invites the Eritrean government to enter into negotiation to resolve the dispute peacefully.

The ministry said refraining to accept the new peace proposal on the part of the Eritrean government would lead the two countries to unwanted situations which it said would also be a threat to the peace and stability of east Africa. It said Ethiopia has repeatedly confirmed that it would not go to war unless obliged to do so, as democracy and development are the two top most agendas for Ethiopia now. It said Ethiopia believes that the dispute could be resolved through peaceful means and the principle of give-and-take.

Source: ENA web site, Addis Ababa, in English 24 Dec 04