Ethiopia-Tigray Conflict: long way to peace 

It appears that it is still a long way before peace is achieved in the Ethiopia-Tigray conflict. 

Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed has suggested that the pressure of “heavy foreign interference” in the peace talks with the Tigray administration may stall the achievement of truce. He, however, remains hopeful that a peace pact will be reached between the two conflicting sides. Decrying the impact of international pressure on the conflict, the PM said Ethiopians can solve their own issues without the external interference. “Of course, if there are lots of interventions from left and right, it’s very difficult,” Ahmed said, while speaking to the China Global Television Network (CGTN). 

What’s the progress of the talks? 

Although talks were initially scheduled to conclude on Sunday, the negotiations, which started on October 25 in South Africa, proceeded on Monday. A cease-fire in hostilities, as demanded by the AU and the UN, is the goal of the talks, although little information has been made public about the content or progress. According to the AFP news agency, a spokesperson for African Union Commission chair Moussa Faki Mahamat stated on Monday that “there was no date limitation” on the negotiations. 

While confirming the federal army’s capture of the Tigray towns of Shire, Axum, and Adwa last month from the rebel Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF), the PM reiterated the federal government’s stance against the secession of the Tigray region. “We are trying to convince TPLF to respect the law of the land, to respect the constitution, and to act as one state in Ethiopia,” he said.