NAIROBI (Halbeeg News) – Delegates from Somalia, Ethiopia, and Eritrea have arrived in Djibouti on Thursday amid initiatives to end the dispute between Djibouti and Eritrea underway.
The plane carrying the delegation led by Somali, Eritrean and Ethiopian foreign Ministers touched down at Ambouli Airport, taking the first step in a historic diplomatic ballet aimed at ending a decade of conflict and hostility.
Djibouti Minister foreign Minister, Mahmoud Ali Youssouf who received the delegates at the airport said the historic move has opened a new chapter.
“Time for peace and appeasement between Eritrea and Djibouti has come. A new chapter has been opened today with the historic visit of Minister Osman Saleh, FM of Eritrea to Djibouti,” Yousouf said.
The delegates are expected to hold talks with officials from Djibouti on means to resume Djibouti-Eritrea talks to resolve their differences.
The thaw between the foes who fought a bitter border war 10 years ago follows sequence calls on Djibouti and Eritrea to bury the hatchet by the leaders of Somalia and Ethiopia
The apparent detente in recent weeks has raised hopes of a normalisation of relations that might boost regional trade and ease tensions.
The last time Djibouti and Eritrean troops fought head-on was ten years ago, with each side claiming victory in response to what they said was the other’s aggression.
Their long cold war has stymied economic development, frozen political relations and helped justify domestic repression.
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