MOGADISHU (Halbeeg News) – Djibouti President, Ismail Omar Guelleh is expected to travel to the capital city of Eritrea, Asmara, Halbeeg News understands.
The Eritrea and Djibouti had argued over ownership of the area called Ras Doumeira since the 1900s. They clashed in 2008, leading to several deaths.
According to reliable sources, Mr. Guelleh will be visiting Asmara town later this week.
Djibouti leader will hold talks with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki on means to abandon war paths for peace and re-establish diplomatic ties.
Mid this month, Djiboutian to the UN Siad Doualeh wrote an open letter to the UN Security Council to mediate in their border dispute with Eritrea.
Mr. Doualeh asked for a judicial settlement which would be legally binding to both sides.
The border dispute between Djibouti and Eritrea is perennial, starting from the colonial days when the former was under French administration while the latter under the Italians.
The two countries engaged in a deadly battle over Ras Doumeira in 2008.
In 2010, Qatar agreed to mediate the conflict and offered to provide troops as a buffer between the two sides.
Both sides seemed amenable to the offer and it somehow quietened the trouble.
That was until last year in June when Doha withdrew the troops, in the wake of a blockade imposed on Qatar by its Middle East neighbours.
Incidentally, neighbours like Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates accused Qatar of financing terrorists, a charge it has denied.
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